Loose the Hounds
by aflightoffancy
Summary: A deadly riot is the catalyst for all kinds of change in Terminal City. MA.
1. Chapter 1

**Loose the Hounds**

Disclaimer: Not mine. At all. And, yes, a little sad about it.

Summary: A deadly riot is the catalyst for all kinds of change in Terminal City. MA.

_So the muse has struck again… And apparently it was in a mood._

Chapter One

* * *

Alec stood in front of the gate, his arms crossed, refusing to so much as move a muscle until Max came through it. Alec knew that if he moved before then, he'd do something he'd probably regret. The most likely was beat Logan until he was unrecognizable.

Logan was standing behind him, or more like pacing. And if he so much as said a word, Alec would go ballistic.

The news had very kindly been giving them live, on-the-scene updates from the riot downtown. Max had managed to get away. She _had_. And she was going to come through the gate any second now. She _was_.

The mayor had agreed to a meeting, but had refused to let any of his people enter Terminal City on the grounds that their safety could not be guaranteed. Logan had brokered the agreement for a delegation of transgenics to meet with the mayor at city hall. Due to the volatile situation in the community, no one was to be aware of the meeting until after it had already taken place and the transgenics were safely back in TC.

Alec had been dead set against it. He'd warned them that it was too dangerous. Trusting the ordinaries when the town was ready to hang every last one of them was reckless and stupid. Alec knew all about reckless and stupid, when it was a good idea and when it would just get a person killed.

Once the delegation had arrived at city hall, the meeting had, of course, been leaked to the press. The newshounds had shown up and along with them the anti-freak brigade. While the meeting was going on, the group outside had swollen, growing from a loud, obnoxious crowd into a full-blown, angry lynch mob.

Max and the four others who'd been chosen to go with her hadn't had a chance. The sector police hadn't exactly been working to ensure their safety either. From the looks of the footage the news had been showing over and over, the sector police had basically set up a perimeter and let the mob do whatever they wanted. Max and the others had been caught off guard. It looked like they'd been forced outside the government building and locked out, fed to the wolves.

The others had formed a square around Max, protecting her as best they could, fighting desperately to get to the perimeter. They'd fought to the last man to get Max out. From the news, it looked like one second she was there and the next she was gone. Alec's best guess was that they'd found a sewer entrance and closed the manhole cover behind her. The TV people were warning viewers not to let children see the next few minutes of video. Its gruesome nature hadn't stopped them, however, from showing it over and over again.

The four transgenics who'd gone with Max had been torn to shreds. It was worse than Biggs. Worse than CeCe. And it had almost been Max.

"Where _is_ she?" Logan asked anxiously, not for the first time.

Alec didn't bother to answer, focusing on not hitting Logan. Max would be mad if Alec beat the crap out of him. Max was on her way back. She had to be, or Alec was going to scour every last inch of sewer in the city to find her and drag her back to TC where he was going to lock her up and refuse to let her out ever again. Especially not the next time Eyes Only had one of his brilliant ideas for bettering the transgenic cause.

A hint of movement caught his eyes, but the door didn't open and Alec thought he must have imagined it. Then he realized what he was seeing. Fingers curled around the door trying to push it open. All of TC's exterior doors were purposely heavy. Ordinaries couldn't just barge through, but a transgenic's strength could easily open them.

The guard who'd been on duty and waiting with them also realized what was happening, peered through the crack and then pulled the door open wide.

Max didn't release the door fast enough and stumbled forward as it pulled her inside. Alec tried to move to help her. He really did. His mind was screaming at him to go to her, but he couldn't get his body to obey.

"Max?" he managed hoarsely.

"Max, are you all right?" Logan moved toward her, stopping just outside virus-approved distance.

All right wasn't even close to what Max was. She was bleeding from some sort of head wound, bruised, scratched, nicked, cut, hunks of her hair had been torn out, and that was just what Alec took in at a glance.

"Alec?" Her barely audible whisper was all it took to break him free from the paralyzing inertia.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw the surprise on Logan's face that he wasn't who she'd asked for, but Alec ignored it. Max needed someone who could actually help her and didn't have the energy to placate her on-again, off-again boyfriend.

Alec stopped in front of her, not sure where to touch her that wouldn't hurt her further, although he doubted she was feeling much of anything. Max looked shell-shocked, eyes wide and staring.

"They trashed my bike," she said blankly.

Logan shook his head. "Max, we're worried about you. It doesn't matter about your b-"

Alec made an abrupt slashing motion to silence him. Logan might be Mr. Touchy-Feely, but he was severely lacking in experience with someone in this state.

"They trashed my bike, Alec." She looked up at him, eyes freshly troubled. "Why would they do that?"

"I'm sorry about your bike, Max. It's gonna be ok." Alec grabbed his phone and dialed Command. "Mole?"

"_What_?"

"Max is back. You have a status?"

"_The mob was moving this way, but the sector cops are finally trying to break it up."_

"You got the guard doubled?"

"_You think I'm an idiot?"_

"I can always depend on you to protect your scaly hide."

"_Only way I could depend on you to do it was if I was made of scotch."_

Alec almost smiled, but the sight of Max stopped him. "I'm gonna take care of Max. Let me know if anything changes."

"_Right_."

Alec could tell Mole wanted to ask about Max, but couldn't without looking soft. Alec thought about giving the guy a break, but the truth was that Alec didn't know what to tell him. He ended the call, put his phone in his pocket and once again gave all his attention to the woman standing in front of him. "Max, can you walk to your apartment?"

"What?" she asked, confusion on her face. Her eyes weren't quite focused and Alec stepped closer still. "Alec?"

"It's me, Max. I'm right here."

"Ok, good," she whispered. Max's eyes closed and she fell forward into him. Without missing a beat Alec swept her up in his arms. Her head was resting against his chest and he was newly furious to see where her magnificent hair had been torn out in hunks. The blood from the head wound somehow seemed less offensive than the loss of her hair.

Alec turned and gently carried her toward her apartment building. He felt rather than saw Logan following, and had to fight not to snap at the other man to go away. This was Logan's fault. Max was in this state because she had listened to him instead of to Alec. Alec had told her it was too dangerous. He'd told her the situation outside TC was too volatile to trust the ordinaries with her safety. He'd begged her to demand the meeting be held on neutral ground, close to TC where she could run if she needed to.

It was barely a week since the Jam Pony incident. If news that the mayor was meeting with them leaked, it would result in disaster. Logan had blocked him at every turn. He had assured Max that the mayor's staff was trustworthy, that it would all work out, that brokering a peace with the ordinaries was worth the risk.

Alec had furiously fought it, begged for a different meeting place than the ordinaries' territory, anything, but Max had agreed with Logan. Alec had then insisted on going with her as security, but once again Logan had blocked him. He'd come up with all sorts of reasons that Alec should stay behind, all because the jealous jerk didn't want Max's second around her any more than necessary, especially since Alec had been ousted as her fake boyfriend and Logan was getting his hopes up again. Max had agreed to that too, saying it was too dangerous to risk them both at once. She would go and Alec would stay behind. The only thing Alec had been able to talk her into was the security team. Alec had handpicked four transgenics whose specialty had been personal security. They'd been trained as deadly weapons to be used to bodyguard whatever military type or dignitary might need them.

And now they were dead. They'd been torn apart, protecting Max to the bitter end.

FUBAR didn't even begin to describe this mess.

Logan hurried in front of them and opened the door to Max's apartment. Alec carried her inside, ignoring the jealousy plain on the other man's face. Max opened her eyes groggily as he set her down on the sofa. He tried to get her to lie down, but Max protested, suddenly more alert.

"Back," she said roughly.

"What's wrong with your back?"

"Hurts."

Alec sighed and helped her to sit forward so that she could at least rest her arms on her knees for some support. He then went to the bathroom, gathered a few first aid supplies and returned, sitting on the coffee table facing her. Max was barely conscious. Alec very efficiently washed her face and examined the wound on her head, which he saw was already closing on its own. He'd brought a comb from the bathroom and very quickly parted her hair farther to one side to disguise the worst of the damage. She'd just have to live with a different style until her hair grew back. Alec then began to wash the scrapes and nicks that covered every other bit of exposed skin.

"My bike," she said once again.

"I'm sorry about your bike," Alec replied softly. "We'll get you a new one. I promise."

"No reason for them to do that." She looked up at him, sorrow plain on her face.

"No." He set the cloth he'd been using to wash her hands aside, and took her chilled fingers in his. "There was no reason."

Abruptly, Max stood and moved away from him. Alec stood, too, not knowing what she intended. He doubted Max knew either.

"They… they're dead? The team?"

Alec simply nodded. He knew she'd been trying to keep the truth at bay. She'd focused on a different loss, something personal, but more acceptable. Her bike. But Max took too much responsibility to allow herself to ignore the true loss for long. She knew the other transgenics had died to protect her.

Tears, huge droplets, began to fall down her cheeks. Alec watched her face crumble and without even thinking he pulled her into his arms. Her knees gave way and Alec sank with her to the floor, holding her while she silently wept.

Alec wanted to tell her that it was all right, or at least that it would be all right, but the words stuck in his throat. Instead, he simply pulled her closer, wrapping his arms around her trembling form. This wasn't Max, not his Max. This was a tired, battered, traumatized woman who had to be protected until she could be the Max he knew again.

Alec caught movement in his peripheral vision and looked up. Logan was shifting from foot to foot, pain, anger and resentment all plain on his face. Alec just didn't understand how a person could live with their emotions so close to the surface. If he wore his like Logan did, he doubted Logan would still be in the room. He'd have already run for his life.

"I got this, Logan," Alec said quietly.

Logan's face clouded with fury. "If you think I'm leaving-"

"If you think I was giving you an option…" Alec's voice was hard, unflinching. Max wasn't herself because of Logan's insistence that the plan would work and Alec wasn't in the mood to be the affable, easygoing guy Logan knew.

"Max needs someone here who actually cares about her," Logan snapped.

"She has someone here," Alec replied, his tone icy. "I'm the one who told her not to go."

"It shouldn't have happened like that," Logan said, deflating visibly.

"Go away, Logan. Max will call you when she's ready."

"I don't think-"

Alec felt a smile begin to form, a malicious predator's smile. "If you want me to hit you, just keep talking. Cause there's nothing I'd like more than to hit something right now."

Logan must have finally caught on to just how angry Alec really was because he took a step toward the door.

"In case you're still wondering, that was absolutely a threat," Alec said plainly. "Now _go away_."

Logan glared and Alec almost felt a twinge of respect that the man still didn't back down when many a lesser man would have. "Tell Max I'll call," he said, his gaze falling to her and the worry and guilt immediately returned along with the jealousy that he wasn't the one holding her.

Alec didn't bother to respond. Instead, he let his eyes fall to the woman still crying quietly in his arms. He heard the door close behind Logan and felt the tension drain away, leaving sorrow and exhaustion behind in its wake.

Alec gently smoothed a hand over Max's hair. "It's ok, Max," he lied. "It'll be ok."

* * *

_You were warned… A definite mood. More soon…_


	2. Chapter 2

**Loose the Hounds**

Summary: A deadly riot is the catalyst for all kinds of change in Terminal City. MA.

_Thank you very, very much for the kind reviews. A little dark, I know... We'll lighten it a bit for today._

Chapter Two

* * *

Alec woke slowly, feeling just as tired as when he'd fallen asleep. He looked at his watch and realized that was because he'd barely been out for an hour.

Alec brushed his hand over Max's hair, wincing at a once-again visible patch where it had been yanked out. Her head was resting on his chest, rising and falling with his breathing. After Logan left, he'd gathered her up and taken her to bed. He hadn't even considered leaving her. He'd simply settled himself beside her and pulled her back into his arms. He didn't know how long he'd lain awake after that, his mind unable to rest.

Alec had nearly lost her. When the mob had rushed her and the others, they had disappeared into the mass of bodies and Alec had been sure that was it. He felt his heart begin to race at the memory and had to order himself to calm down.

Max was here. She was alive. She was going to kill him when she woke up with him in her bed, but Alec didn't care. He'd come too close to losing her.

Max and her stubborn faith in her fellow man. She should have known by now not to trust anyone. Alec had learned it the hard way, a lesson drilled into his head over and over again. He had to look after himself, because no one else was going to do it.

Ordinaries were the ones who'd created Manticore, the ones who'd made sure the children it created were tortured to the point of near insanity. Ordinaries were the ones who'd happily strung up Biggs who'd been doing nothing more dangerous than delivering packages. Ordinaries were the ones who had savagely torn four human beings to pieces the day before like a pack of wolves turning on one of its own.

Alec's phone began to vibrate where he still had it tucked in his pocket and he pulled it out. "Yeah."

"_Our favorite sector police are at the gates_," Mole half-snarled.

"What do they want?" Alec felt Max stiffen next to him as she abruptly came awake.

"_Want to talk to Fearless Leader about inciting a riot_."

"You gotta be kidding me."

"_That's me_," Mole grunted. "_Comedy is my life._"

"There a news crew out there?"

"_That a serious question_?"

Alec huffed out a tiny laugh, watched Max's head bob slightly as his chest moved. For days they'd been practically ringed by cameras hoping to catch a glimpse of a freak in action. The riot would have only made it worse. "Pick a crew and let them in."

"_Sure_." Alec could hear Mole chewing on his cigar. "_I'll let the cameras in and after that I'll sign up for piano lessons. I have music in my soul_."

Max raised her head to look at him, wincing as the movement pulled at her injuries. Alec held up a finger to ask her to wait before she said anything. "Better dust off the ivories because I want that crew in as soon as you can. I have an idea."

"_You're serious_," Mole said flatly.

"Why does everyone always assume I'm joking?"

"_Cause you're a permanently smiling jackass_?"

"Do jackasses smile?" Alec deadpanned.

"_If you didn't stink of cat, I'd have my doubts_."

"The crew, Mole," Alec said.

"_This idea of yours better not suck._" Mole chewed on his cigar some more. "_I'll take them to the office building just inside the gate_."

"Thanks." Alec knew he'd chosen that building because there wouldn't be anything for the newshounds to see that might compromise security.

Alec shoved the phone back in his pocket and looked at Max. She tried to raise herself away from him, but her muscles were already shaking and she fell back digging her chin into his chest. Alec grunted, but made no move to help her. Her body was a mass of bruises and he wasn't going to move her until he had to or she made him.

"You ok?" he asked instead.

"Mob tried to rip my arms off," Max muttered hoarsely. "You?"

"Had better days."

"There a reason you're in my bed?" Her tone implied she wanted to be angry, but was too exhausted and beat-up to manage it.

"You were having a breakdown. Looked like so much fun I thought I'd better stick around."

Max didn't move but Alec could feel her withdrawal. He'd seen too much and he knew Max, of all people, did not appreciate looking weak in front of others. They both knew the danger of looking weak in their world.

"Don't worry, Max. I still think you're a one woman fighting machine who can kick my ass at any given time or place."

"Don't forget it," she said, but the effect was kind of ruined since she was still resting her head against his chest.

"Really, Max," he said softly. "You ok?"

"Will be." She drew in a shuddering breath and let it out slowly. "Thanks… you know… for… everything."

"No problem," he answered. Alec cleared his throat in discomfort. "You know, uhh… Logan was here… earlier…"

"I don't wanna talk about Logan," Max whispered. Her hand fisted in his shirt, tension radiating from her.

"Funny," Alec said, his tone purposely light. "Me either." He was rewarded by feeling her relax against him once again.

"What's with the news crew?"

"I'm tired of hiding," Alec replied simply.

"Meaning?"

"Time we put a face on what they've done." Alec knew his voice was hard, but he'd let Max try it her way and he wasn't going that route any more. If Alec had learned anything from Manticore, it was how to play people. "Time for a little transgenic PR and you're gonna help."

"Me?" Max rose on her arms again and this time her shaky muscles held. Alec took the opportunity to sit up.

"You." He smiled. "Just trust me."

* * *

Alec settled Max into a chair, then stood back. She took several seconds to calm her breathing. Her head was pounding in time with her heart and every inch of her body hurt. They'd all been nearly trampled to death in the initial rush. After that it had been flashes of pushing and shoving, fighting, running and pain.

And then finally Alec. Alec looking white-faced, worried, angry, and the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen. She'd known she was safe.

"You good?" he asked.

"Yeah."

They were in the room next to where the camera crew had set up their equipment. Mole had arranged for a television for her to watch the proceedings and Max could see that the crew was already broadcasting live. The strip across the bottom said _Breaking News_ in bright red letters and underneath was _Awaiting the Arrival of Transgenic Spokesman_. The studio anchor was speaking in voiceover, rehashing the half-baked information they'd managed to glean about Manticore's work and its children. They were also replaying video from the riot in a small inset box. Max very purposely refused to look at that part of the screen. She couldn't think about that. Not yet.

On the screen, Max saw the reporter shift nervously in her chair. Max watched, surprised, as Alec entered the room. She hadn't even realized he'd left her.

Alec held out his hand to the female reporter. She hesitated, but finally took it and shook his hand politely. Alec pretended not to notice her lapse and sat confidently in the seat across from her.

"Thank you for agreeing to this," he said evenly, his voice carrying beautifully for the television viewing public. Even through the screen, Max could feel the force of Alec's personality. He wasn't doing anything more than sitting, but the reporter must have felt it, too. She sat up straighter and smoothed a hand over her skirt. Alec was as handsome on screen as he was in person. Manticore had made them all pretty, but Alec was… _more_.

Alec was an Alpha male. Everyone took notice. It didn't matter who you were, ordinary or transgenic.

"You're Angela Milton?" he asked when she didn't say anything.

Embarrassed, the woman seemed to shake herself awake. "Yes. And you are?"

"Alec." He gave her a low-wattage smile. "You can call me Alec."

"But that's not your real name," she stated, a tiny hint of insistence sneaking in, headed toward belligerence.

Alec held out his hands as if to placate her. "True. To a point. I was X5-494 until a year or so ago."

Had it only been a year, Max wondered? Felt like longer. Felt like she'd known Alec longer anyway.

"Manticore didn't allow names, but I have one now," Alec said, just a hint of pride showing. "We all do."

"Is that important to you?" the reporter asked.

Alec shrugged. "Do you like being a number?"

"I'm human," she said in that just-shy-of-belligerent tone again, "not a genetically engineered super-soldier." The press had been openly ripping transgenics apart for so long that she couldn't seem to change her tune even when faced with one so charming.

Alec didn't rise to the bait. "This country has many soldiers who've had the honor to serve. They have numbers, but they also have names."

"Those soldiers chose to serve," the woman said coolly. "They weren't made in labs."

Max had the sudden desire to punch the woman. Objective, her ass.

"You're right." In contrast to the reporter, Alec was remaining perfectly polite, unruffled by her aggressive, almost rude remarks. It was kind of freaky, seeing him be so _sincere_. "Regular soldiers have the gift of parents to raise them, to love them, to help them make the choice of what job will be right for them. We did not have those privileges."

"We've heard rumors of some of the things that went on at Manticore," she said, clearly skeptical. "You think you were treated badly?"

Max's heart constricted painfully at the look on Alec's face. For the barest second he allowed the reporter and, through her, everyone watching to see the answer to her question, that handsome, smiling disguise, brutally stripped away. After that the mask was back in place, but his eyes… Alec's eyes remained pained and distant. "There's no need to talk about my sad childhood."

The woman cleared her throat, visibly taken aback by what she'd seen. "Then why don't you tell us why you asked for this interview."

"I wanted to talk about what happened yesterday," Alec answered simply.

"The riot."

He nodded.

"You speak for all the transgenics? You're the leader?"

Alec gave her an honest grin at that, accompanied by a short laugh of genuine amusement. "No, not me. We're all just trying to survive, trying to find our place in this world. Until then, we all do what we do best."

"And that is?"

"We make the best of a bad situation."

"But you're the one doing the talking. You must be important."

Max expected a flippant remark, an '_oh, I'm priceless_,' but instead he shook his head. Alec wasn't there to flirt with the reporter and Max could almost feel the anger just below the surface. He was on a mission. He just so happened to be using his innate charm to get it done. "I'm not here to talk about me. I'm here to introduce you to some friends."

The reporter looked around nervously as if a squad of monsters/soldiers was about to storm the room.

"Why don't I tell you a little about them first," Alec suggested, ignoring the reporter's barely disguised panic.

"All right."

"Bingo spent most of his time in the Middle East. He was head of security for General Milton during the last action. Among other things, he was the one who uncovered the plot to plant a dirty bomb in the capital building."

"Bingo?" the woman asked incredulously.

Alec pursed his lips in some chagrin. "Many of our names are closer to nicknames. Just something that stuck or that we took a liking to."

"Ok. These other people you are going to introduce?"

"Marco and Polo," Alec grinned when the intrepid reporter was unable to hold back a snort, "worked as a team. One guarded while the other eliminated the threat. They worked in perfect sync to protect whoever they were assigned to. They traveled cross country with countless officials protecting them while outside the militarized safe zones." Alec's grin widened into a fond smile. "They were also nearly impossible to beat in two-man volleyball."

Max rolled her eyes. Alec was pulling every string he could for _Project Humanize the Transgenics_.

"Yankee was probably the most highly trained of the group. Among others, he personally guarded the President during two credible threats. Fearless, loyal, braver than most of us put together." Max could _feel_ Alec's sense of loss. She hadn't even realized Alec knew Yankee that well.

Alec squared his shoulders and took in a deep breath. "The last person I want you to meet is Max. She's a rarity even among us. She managed to escape from Manticore when she was a little girl. She spent ten years on the run, trying to stay alive and stay free. She's the one who convinced us we need to find a place for ourselves in the world and stop running. If anyone, she's our unofficial leader. That's why she was the one chosen to speak to the mayor on our behalf."

"Max? The woman involved in the Jam Pony incident?"

"She was there. So was I. We were trying to protect one of us, a pregnant woman the police were chasing. We were trying to sneak out when the police opened fire on us, as you've been told by the employees at Jam Pony. Max kept that situation from devolving more than it already had. We lost a friend that day, but none of the police or any other government officials there were harmed. That was Max's doing, and another reason she was chosen to go to the mayor yesterday." Max noted he didn't mention that he'd been shot as well. Healing that quickly would have looked suspicious. Alec turned his head to the side, barely raising his voice. "Max?"

Max realized that was her cue. She stood, frustrated when a wave of dizziness struck and her legs almost buckled. She ordered herself not to fall and moved toward the next room by sheer force of will.

She squinted against the bright television lights. She tried to bring up a hand to shield her eyes, but a broken collarbone made the blood drain from her face. In an instant Alec was beside her, guiding her to the chair next to him.

Max heard the crew gasp as Alec moved aside and they got a good look at her. Alec had timed the interview perfectly. Max was looking her absolute worst. All of the bruises were standing out starkly, mottled and dark, beginning to change colors. Before the interview, Alec had gently brushed her hair back the way it had been with an "It's just for a little bit. We'll fix it back," as if she were still weeping and confused. The gash on her forehead was still plainly visible. One eye was blood red and puffy. In short, she was a mess and Alec wanted them to see the damage done before the evidence could fade.

Alec sat down beside her, moving his chair close. He took her hand and intertwined his fingers with hers, bringing her hand to rest on his thigh. Under normal circumstances, she would have yelled at him and shoved him away. Sitting in front of a news crew, beaten half to death… These were not normal circumstances. She just didn't feel right, physically or otherwise. The lights, the crew, so many people watching… She felt… crowded. Alec's presence was more comforting than she wanted to admit.

"Max went to speak with the mayor yesterday to talk about helping us," Alec continued, ignorant of her inner monologue. "The older transgenics here, we can manage under… less than ideal circumstances. But we can't live this way forever and we certainly don't want it for the children."

"How many children are there?"

"Enough for us to worry," Alec said, allowing genuine concern to shine in his voice. "As you can see we are far from unstoppable or invulnerable. Max went to the mayor along with Bingo, Yankee, Marco and Polo, soldiers who faithfully served the people of this country," Alec's voice broke slightly and he cleared his throat, "brave men who did their duty under terrifying circumstances, literally since they were kids, and they _died_ yesterday. We were just trying to talk to see if we could make arrangements for food and a few other basic supplies and they were trampled, ripped to pieces. Max was the only one to survive and you can see at what cost."

Alec shook his head. "You're worried about us, that we're killers or animals, and I'll be the first to admit that some us are freaky looking, but the four men who died yesterday, they were heroes and no one ever acknowledged them. You may think we're killers, but we're the ones dying."

The reporter coughed uncomfortably. "Max, would you like to say something?"

Max blinked, unsure of what to say. Alec was the talker. She was the ass-kicker. She doubted, however, that would make a fitting ending to what Alec was trying to do with the interview.

"I…" Max swallowed past her scratchy throat, "I would still like to meet with the mayor." Alec squeezed her hand in encouragement. "No matter what happened yesterday, the situation can't go on like it has. We've been fighting since we were little and we're _tired_ of fighting."

Max was suddenly beyond exhausted. She felt like every last bit of energy she had, had been used up to walk from the other room into this one. Her head was pounding, the lights were beating down on her and trying to follow the interview was becoming more and more difficult. "We just want to talk," she finished quietly.

Alec released her hand and turned toward her. "Max?"

"Hmm…"

"The interview is over," she heard Alec say. "Thank you very much for coming. I hope it will help."

"But… wait…" Max heard the reporter sputtering. "I still have questions."

"I'm sorry. Another time," Alec said in a tone that would brook no opposition.

Max felt Alec's arms around her shoulders and beneath her knees and then the sensation of being lifted. Good thing, too, since she'd felt like she was falling. Alec shifted her in his arms so that her head was resting against his shoulder. The movement jostled her and Max let out an involuntary cry.

"Easy, Maxie, easy. Almost done here," Alec soothed. She could feel his voice rumbling in his chest where her ear was pressed against him.

"Thank you for your time, Ms. Martin," Alec said politely. Max felt him turn and walk out of the room, away from the too-bright lights that hurt even through her closed eyelids. He didn't stop in the next room, but kept going out of the building. "Go back to sleep, Max. You made a good prop." She could hear the smile in his voice.

"Not a prop, you jerk," she muttered.

"Damsel in distress?"

Max snorted inelegantly.

"Yeah, not your style. The knight in shining armor thing never really suited me either."

"Screw up too much."

It was Alec's turn to snort. "Go to sleep, princess. We'll see what we can do about saving the kingdom tomorrow."

* * *

_This is going somewhere… honest… More soon…_


	3. Chapter 3

**Loose the Hounds**

Summary: A deadly riot is the catalyst for all kinds of change in Terminal City. MA.

Chapter Three

* * *

Max woke slowly. She was in her own bed, alone this time. She could hear the TV in the next room, though the volume was turned almost all the way down.

She tried her muscles, tentatively stretching. It was better than the last time she'd been awake. Not even close to good, but better. Her body felt like one giant bruise, but her eye didn't feel like it was going to explode and her collarbone was knitting together. Her ribs were still a bitch, though.

Max slid to the edge of the bed and tried to stand. Doable, but… _ouch_. She wandered into the bathroom and stood under the shower until she was gasping and her legs would no longer hold her up, which was barely long enough to rinse off the worst of the grime. After that she sat on her bed for a while and took her time pulling on a clean pair of sweats. She just didn't think she could handle anything rougher against her skin at the moment. She thought about brushing her hair the way Alec had to hide what they'd done, but decided to leave it. No way was she going to let them or herself smooth over what had happened.

Max shuffled into the living room, but didn't see anyone. She knew she wasn't alone, however. The apartment didn't feel empty. She rounded the sofa to see Alec stretched out, sound asleep.

Max's eyes traveled to the television and her jaw dropped open. There she was, plain as day. Alec was gathering her up in his arms, murmuring to her when she cried out. The look on his face…

"Hey." Alec's voice was sleep roughened and he rubbed at his eyes as he sat up. "How you feeling?"

"Crappy… but better."

"Good." He stood up from the sofa, running a hand through his hair, using his other hand to motion for her to take the spot he'd vacated. "You feel up to talking?" he asked, his tone casual.

"I guess," Max said, her tone matching his.

He turned, looking her up and down as if to see if he really thought she could handle it. Whatever he saw seemed to reassure him. He nodded his head and asked, "So what happened yesterday?"

"Our talk with the mayor was going along fine." She half-sat, half-fell onto the couch and had to stop for a moment to control her breathing. Her body didn't appreciate her moving around so much. "He'd agreed to allow in some supplies, was going to allow talks for a more permanent solution to this whole crap-fest and then they noticed city hall was surrounded." Max knew her tone was bitter, but she didn't bother to hide it. "They called security and ordered us outside at gunpoint."

"Nice." He ran his hand through his hair again, this time in frustration. "I saw the rest on the news."

Max swallowed past her suddenly closed throat, grateful he hadn't asked about what happened after that. "Yeah," she managed to whisper.

"Bingo still owed me ten bucks," Alec said, but his smile was distant. Escape and evade, Manticore's training for emotional survival.

"How's the interview playing?" The band across the bottom of the screen said _Mob Halts Humanitarian Mission_. Humanitarian. Somebody had a sense of humor.

"Putty in my hands." He rubbed them together conspiratorially as he turned toward the TV. "They've been digging up archival footage of the four of them on bodyguard duty as well as playing video they managed to catch of the X7s playing out in the yard. They'd have moved too fast playing tag, so I went with hopscotch."

"_Hopscotch_?" Max asked incredulously.

Alec smirked. "I told them it was agility training and made sure they did it where one of the news crews would see it. What?" he asked when Max kept staring at him like he'd grown an extra head. "You wanted them practicing their hand to hand or… marksmanship or something?"

"You deliberately used the kids to make us look… cute… on TV?"

"Cute _and_ innocent." Alec's face was still a mask of amusement, but she could tell he was anything but. "I'll do whatever I have to do to get them to quit taking potshots at us and let us out of this dump. Do you know how long it's been since I had a decent drink?"

"Because your scotch needs are our most pressing business."

"Actually," Alec sighed, bringing a hand up to the bridge of his nose, "I hate being locked up in here. The rest of us had ten more years of it than you and we don't appreciate the repeat. We're completely circled above ground and they're shutting off our access to the sewers, tunnel by tunnel. Another week and we'll be completely blockaded. That and I'm tired of being so serious. You, the runes, White, having to hole up here, fighting about whether you should go to the mayor…"

"Logan." Max's breath left in a whoosh.

"I didn't hit him yesterday," Alec said more cheerfully, as if she would be proud of his restraint. "Although I did give him the biggest I-told-you-so ever."

"It wasn't his fault."

"Don't defend him, Max," he bit out, suddenly angry. Alec knelt in front of her. "And he's not the only one I owe an I-told-you-so. You listened to him and not me." He set his hands on the sofa on either side of her, his furious gaze locked with hers. "Eyes Only has no training and he has no problem putting you in danger again and again. I just want to keep you safe."

"Alec-"

"_No_, Max. I get to be mad at you this time," he said, his eyes flashing, impossibly green now that she could see them so closely. "Four good men died yesterday because you didn't listen. They believed in you. They protected you to _death_. Your altruistic, we-can-win-because-we're-right attitude got them killed. You continue to believe it even though life has done nothing but beat us down again and again."

"I have to believe it," Max answered simply. "There's no reason to go on otherw-"

Alec leaned forward and kissed her. There was nothing tentative about it. Max was so surprised, she didn't even think about pushing him away. He brought one hand up to the side of her face, his thumb brushing across her cheek, his other hand settling on her hip. He pulled back only slightly, leaving her lips still tingling from his kiss, his breath gliding across her suddenly overheated skin. "I thought I lost you," he whispered.

"You didn't."

"I thought you were gone and I… I didn't handle it well."

Alec kissed her again, fiercely, letting her know just how afraid he'd been. Max's lips trailed after his as he pulled away. "I'm glad you're all right." He stood and began walking toward the door. "Logan keeps calling," he said, opening it. "I may or may not have insulted his mother the last time. You should call him. Tell him you're ok."

"Ok," Max answered hoarsely.

"Get some rest. I'll be in Command if you need anything."

* * *

Max sat there stunned after Alec closed the door. She involuntarily raised her hand to her lips that felt like they'd been branded. She felt _marked_.

Alec.

Alec had kissed her.

No uncomfortable will-he-won't-he, no wondering about how he felt, no "we're not like that," no months of uncertain tiptoeing around each other, over-analyzing everything, trying to decide if it would mess up a semi-decent business relationship/friendship.

Yesterday, Alec had been her friend, her partner in crime, and Logan had been her ever-present, but virus-endangered, off-again boyfriend.

Today, Alec had apparently decided that wasn't going to work any more and informed her in the most personal and obvious way possible.

She should have expected as much from him. He was fearless. If he wanted something, he went and got it. If he wanted to do something, he did it. And if Alec thought it, he said it, whether it was socially acceptable or not and whether the listener wanted to hear it or not.

"_It is my job. You wanna bust my chops about it, go ahead_."

"_You made this mess, not me_."

"_He doesn't act like any brother I've ever seen. Seems to me like he's got the hots for you. Kinda kinky if you ask me_."

"_I don't want your pity. I want your absence_."

"_You think the only problem you and Logan have is some genetically engineered virus that'll kill the guy if you touch him_?"

Maybe it was because Manticore had appreciated subterfuge in the field, but demanded absolute truth on the base, their version of "real" life. Maybe it was the lack of normal social skills most people developed to get around what they really wanted to say, but couldn't.

In any case, Alec was a creature of the present, no matter how much the past pressed on them. Alec didn't worry about the past, or the future. He just concentrated on the immediate circumstances and kept going.

Before she'd made him laser it off, Alec couldn't be bothered to hide his barcode nine out of ten times. His stage name was Monty Cora, for crying out loud. He just went out and did whatever he needed or wanted to do. If someone figured it out, he'd do something else to get out of trouble. Since the Jam Pony thing he'd been more careful in some ways, even more reckless in others, even more likely to say exactly what was on his mind. The way their lives were going, there might not be another chance.

Logan was all about hiding. Eyes Only was just that - eyes only. He hid what he was doing behind his other persona. She always had the feeling there was more going on in his head than what he was telling her. Worked both ways, she supposed. She and Logan had never really been exactly open about how they felt. They'd spent two years dancing around each other. Or maybe it was her. Maybe she'd spent so long hiding, she just sucked at the baring her soul thing and Logan had been holding back until she was ready.

Max's head was pounding again. Where was Cindy? Max needed to bounce some of this off someone who wasn't terminally damaged to see if it made any sense.

Alec. The guy just never failed to turn her life upside down.

The million dollar question… How did she actually feel about that?

When the crap hit the fan at the mayor's office, all she'd been able to think was, Alec was right. Should have listened to Alec. Had to get back to Alec so he could rub her nose in how wrong it had gone.

Except Alec hadn't. He'd taken care of her and he'd turned disaster into a play for sympathy that for the first time seemed to have the media on their side.

Max felt tears sting her eyes. It had only taken the death of four good men to turn the tide.

She should call Logan. All he would have seen was her near nosedive at the end of the interview and Alec carrying her out. He would be worried. She didn't want to talk to him though. She and Logan were the ones who'd set up the meeting with the mayor despite Alec's warnings. It wasn't their fault it had gone so wrong, but she still felt like they were to blame.

Max's cell phone began to vibrate. It was sitting on the coffee table and she turned it so she could see the screen. Logan. She waited for it to stop then looked at the screen again. Missed calls, voicemail, lots of it. She picked the phone up, cleared the missed calls and started on the voicemail. O.C., Sketchy, a few others, and Logan, becoming more and more frustrated with each call. Finally she got to the most recent.

_Max, Alec is stonewalling and no one else will tell me anything. I need to know you're ok. If you get this, I'm on my way to TC_.

Max erased all of the voicemail and then looked around the apartment. She couldn't stay here if Logan was coming. She wasn't ready to talk to him yet. Certainly not with her lips still stinging from Alec's kiss and certainly not with how muddled her feelings were about their role in what had happened yesterday.

Max got to her feet and shuffled to the door. Her feet were bare, but she didn't have the energy to find socks. She wasn't going far. Alec's apartment was just across the hall. Logan avoided Alec at all costs and Alec had said he'd be in Command.

Max closed her door and moved painfully across the hall. Alec's door wasn't locked. It wasn't like they had anything worth taking. They'd all just scrounged what they could to make things livable.

Max walked into the apartment and stopped so abruptly she almost lost her balance. Alec's place was trashed, as if someone had walked a circuit around the room breaking anything and everything that could be broken. Glass, furniture, everything.

_I thought you were gone and I… I didn't handle it well_.

Max padded toward the sofa, mindful of the glass on the floor. She brushed debris off the cushions and sat down.

For a moment, she simply looked around her at the damage. It looked like a tornado had gone through. She'd only known Alec to be so self-destructive one other time. The Berrisford thing. Rachel.

Huh. She'd think about that some more after she'd had some rest.

Max stretched out on the sofa. She wished she had a blanket, but it was too late to look for one now.

Max fell asleep to the sound of someone knocking on the door across the hall.

* * *

_More soon…_


	4. Chapter 4

**Loose the Hounds**

Summary: A deadly riot is the catalyst for all kinds of change in Terminal City. MA.

_Thank you _so_ much for the reviews and please forgive the delay. I was briefly held hostage away from the computer._

Chapter Four

* * *

"Where is she?"

Alec turned at the sound of Logan's furious question. "What?"

"Max." Logan got right in Alec's face, which was a very bad idea considering how Alec felt about him at the moment. "Where is she?"

Alec gave Logan a push to make him back up. He made sure to put more into it than was strictly necessary, a clear warning. "In her apartment, resting, last I saw her."

"Well, she's not there now."

"Then she's feeling better."

Some of the other transgenics were starting to circle. No one was feeling particularly friendly toward ordinaries at the moment and even less so toward Logan, since he'd pushed for Max to go to city hall against multiple objections. They fanned out behind Alec and he could feel the tension building. To be honest, Alec was more concerned with where Max had gone. They were fast healers, but Max had taken a massive amount of damage and shouldn't really have been mobile.

Alec had known she wouldn't make it through the interview. He'd been counting on it even. Call him mercenary, but that's what he'd been trained to be. Manticore had given him skills and for once he was going to use them to make transgenic lives better rather than worse. That didn't stop him from worrying, however. Max'd had some rest, but he knew it would still be a day or two before she really felt better.

"Alec, I'm getting tired of having to go through you to get to Max," Logan said testily.

"Then quit coming here," Alec said, his tone sickly sweet. "Cause I'm not here to make your life easier. I'm here to keep Max and the rest of us from getting killed, something you and I really have different methods on."

"Is that all it is?" Logan snapped. "You just want to protect her? Because I think you just want to get in her pants."

Alec knew Logan was being purposely crude to get a response out of him. One of the Xs standing behind Alec began to step forward, but Alec held out a hand to stop him. "Logan, we have bigger problems today than your dysfunctional relationship with Max. Riot? Dead friends? Boss taking a sick day? Any of this ringing a bell?"

Logan apparently was not to be deterred. "I know Max lied about you two being together, but tell me there's nothing to it. Tell me I'm wrong."

"Why should I?" Alec said coolly. "I want Max."

Logan was stopped in his proverbial tracks. He obviously hadn't expected Alec to just admit it.

Alec just shrugged mentally. What good did it do to hide what he was thinking? It was the truth. Why be embarrassed about it? If he wanted someone, he had no problem saying so.

Yesterday, when it had all fallen to crap, his muddied feelings for Max had become very clear. She was more than just important to their cause, more even than just important to him. She might be _everything_ to him. The thought of Max's death had nearly brought him to his knees.

After the flag-raising, Max had openly restated that she and Logan never had been together and _couldn't_ be together. In Alec's books that meant he wasn't poaching on anyone's territory. So he'd told Max and now he'd told Logan. They could do whatever they wanted with the information. Knowing Max, she'd probably kick his ass as soon as she was feeling better. Logan… he was probably going to… sit and think for a while.

"You're serious," Logan said in disbelief.

Alec heard Mole, standing beside him, snort. Alec shook his head. "What's a guy got to do to be taken seriously around here?"

"You could try not being an idiot," Mole suggested around his cigar. "Works for me."

Alec smirked. "But it's my gift. Everybody's got to be good at something."

"Well, you suck at that too, princess, so keep looking. You'll find your calling one day."

"Just tell me where she is," Logan cut in.

"I don't know," Alec shot back, his anger quickly resurfacing as he turned back to Logan. "If she's gone somewhere to lick her wounds, that's her business."

Logan shifted back and forth on his feet, his hands fisted. "I thought you said you cared about her."

Alec felt the urge to growl, but instead purposely relaxed his stance, giving the impression he didn't have a care in the world. "That's her business, too."

"Please," Logan said, plaintively this time, worriedly. "I just need to know that she's all right. I need to… to tell her I'm sorry."

Alec sighed and ran a hand through his hair, then looked at Mole. "You keep working on that intel. I want everything you can dig up before we even think about going in."

"Got it," Mole grunted. He turned to the rest of the room and took his cigar from his mouth. "Get back to work, you losers. This ain't government work anymore. We need actual results."

There was a lot of general shuffling and grumbling, and quite a few nasty looks directed at Logan, but the other transgenics returned to what they'd been working on before the interruption.

Against his better judgment, Alec stalked past Logan. "Follow me. I know where she probably went."

* * *

Alec took a quick look inside Max's apartment to make sure she hadn't gone back after Logan left, but the apartment was empty. Logan frowned when he crossed the hall to his own place.

"Wait here," Alec said as he opened the door.

"Why?"

"Because Max changed apartments even though she can barely move. My guess is she was trying to avoid you."

Logan looked like he'd been sucker punched. "But…"

"Just stay here."

Alec walked into the apartment, leaving the door slightly ajar and as he'd suspected, found Max on the sofa. He winced at the state of the room in general.

"Left kind of a mess, didn't ya?" Max asked without opening her eyes.

"I've been meaning to redecorate."

"I didn't know broken crap was a style."

"I'm a trend-setter. It's gonna be big."

"There anything you didn't break?"

"Couch seems to be in decent shape." He looked around and shook his head. "You know it might be easier to just find another apartment than to clean all this up."

Max's eyes finally opened at that and drifted from Alec to the door then toward her own apartment just on the other side, a hint of panic showing. Alec hadn't meant anything by his remark, at least not consciously, and he quickly gave her an out. "Logan's here."

Max didn't react. She stayed where she was, immobile, just breathing in and out, as if trying to keep herself together. Alec walked to her side, ignoring the crunch of glass beneath his feet, and knelt down. "You want me to get rid of him?"

Max brought her weary, troubled eyes to meet his. "Maybe."

"I don't mind running him off." He pursed his lips. "As a matter of fact I'd probably enjoy it, but just so you know he'll keep coming back until you talk to him."

"Yeah." Max sighed.

"How are your ribs?" Alec reached out, his hands splayed across her chest below her breasts. Max jumped in surprise and hissed at the pain it caused. "Sorry. Sit up so I can do this right," he ordered, already helping her move, both of them holding their breaths. Alec kept his touch entirely professional, methodically working his way around her ribcage. Max was still too shaky and Alec was still too mad about what had happened to do more, whether Max was wearing a bra or not.

"Better," he declared.

"Moving a little easier," Max agreed, panting from the strain of sitting up and letting Alec prod her healing ribs.

Alec nodded and stood. "I'll leave you and Logan alone for a bit."

"No."

Alec stopped on his way to the door and turned back. Max looked as surprised by her outburst as he felt. "No?"

"Stay."

"Max, I don't think-"

"Can you just help me and not ask questions?" she asked tiredly.

"Sure, Max, but-"

"Logan, he… I can't… not right now…"

"Ok, Max," he said, instinctively wanting to ease whatever was troubling her. "Ok." If she needed a buffer between her and Logan, then Alec could take the heat. He had broad shoulders.

Alec walked to the door and opened it wide to find Logan pacing in the hallway. "Come on in." He walked back inside. Rather than sit right beside Max, despite the bonus it would have of pissing Logan off, Alec perched next to her on the arm of the sofa.

Logan frowned as he walked in, taking in the damage as well as the sight of Alec seated within arm's reach of Max. "Could you give us a minute, Alec?"

"It's my apartment. I think I'll stick around. Who knows what you crazy kids might get up to without a chaperone."

Logan's frown turned to a glare, but he couldn't ask again without looking like a jerk, especially since Max wasn't backing him.

"Logan, I'm fine," Max said, a little too loudly. "You didn't have to come all this way."

"Yes, I did," Logan countered. "I had to know you were ok. Especially since… since…"

"Since our plan turned into such a screwed up disaster, it got four people killed?"

"Max," Logan said brokenly. "It wasn't our fault. It shouldn't have happened like that."

Max shook her head, although she probably wished she hadn't. Alec saw her pale at the movement, then turn almost green. "They tried to warn us and I wouldn't listen. I ignored them because my feelings… the way I feel about you clouded my judgment."

Logan looked like he'd been kicked. Max looked like she was going to throw up.

"Max?" Alec asked worriedly.

She closed her eyes, trying to calm the nausea. "I'm fine."

"Well, feel free to toss your cookies. Can't make much more of a mess of this place."

Max huffed out a light laugh, but grimaced at the movement it caused. She wrapped an arm around her middle, trying to breathe through the pain.

Alec had no doubts she had internal injuries and wished he could take her to an actual medical facility. There were field medics in their ranks, but no real equipment or anyone who knew much beyond the first aid necessary to get a soldier back to base before they died.

Alec slid down off the arm of the sofa onto the cushion beside her. He loosely put his arm around her, but didn't say anything. He looked up and saw Logan clenching and unclenching his fists. Alec didn't bother to hide his glare. _You did this_.

Logan at least had the good grace to look ashamed although he returned the glare. _Don't use this to take her away_.

Alec shook his head. As if he could. If Logan thought anyone could make Max do anything against her will, then he didn't know the woman in the first place.

"Max?" Alec turned when she didn't answer him. "Max?"

"Yeah," she said tightly. "Just give me a minute."

"Max, I'm… I'm so… so sorry," Logan stammered.

"S'ok, Logan," she wheezed.

"We'll make this right… We will… I know they're gone… And that you got hurt…"

Max held one of her hands up. "Stop… I can't… not right now," she said breathlessly. "You don't…" Max clamped her eyes shut, near agony written on her features. "You weren't there."

"Shhh… Easy, Maxie…" Alec could see the horrors she'd lived through during the riot evident on her face and wished he could somehow lessen the weight she was carrying. He rubbed comforting circles on her back, all of his attention focused on her despite the urge to throw Logan out on his ass.

"Story of my life," Logan said quietly, bitterly.

Max looked up at that, as did Alec. "What?"

Logan's gaze traveled back and forth between them. "Alec wasn't in the riot either, but I don't see you pushing him away."

"Alec…"

"What? Alec _understands_?"

Alec could hear and feel the anger that had been simmering between Max and Logan ever since she'd declared Alec her boyfriend, a title Logan had never had the privilege of being called. Even now that Logan knew the truth that Max had made it up, things still weren't right. Granted Alec's declaration that he really did want Max wasn't going to help that.

Alec almost felt sorry for the guy. It was an ego thing. No guy liked being told another man was better at something, especially by the woman he loved. It _really_ hurt to be told he could never compete, that he didn't even have a chance.

Max didn't look at Alec. She looked straight at Logan. "Yeah," she sighed, "I think he does."

"Max, if you'll just talk to me…"

She was already shaking her head. Alec knew it made her dizzy because she leaned into his side. "I can't."

"You're shutting me out," Logan said sadly. "I thought we were getting past the Alec thing. I know he's not…"

Max held her hands out in front her, as if he were crowding her. Her breathing sped up and Alec felt her heart rate increase. "Stop… Stop, Logan." She put a hand to her head like it suddenly hurt.

Alec quickly stood and with the slightest pressure urged Max back on the sofa. He picked up her feet and eased them up so she could turn more easily and stretch out. He then straightened, allowing every last bit of the fury he'd been feeling ever since Max had left for the meeting with the mayor to show. Alec strode toward Logan who backed up warily. Alec grabbed him by the arm and jerked him toward the door, not stopping until they were out in the hall.

"This is what you don't get." Alec pointed dead center at Logan's chest. "Max is hurting. She was nearly beaten to death and four people died for her. Not because they were on a mission, or because Manticore or White tracked 'em down. She sent them in there and they died for _her_. Those four were good enough, they could have left her and killed their way out of that crowd, but they purposely gave their lives to protect her. How do you think that makes her feel? And you're here bugging her about your love life?"

"This is none of your business. It's between me and Max."

Alec suddenly smiled and he knew it wasn't pretty. "You're wrong there, too."

"You think Max is going to put up with being one in a long line of bar hook-ups? She deserves better."

"She does," Alec replied, warning in his tone. "I get that she's special, maybe better than you."

Logan's eyes narrowed. "Well, well… A leopard trying to change his spots."

"Racial slurs, Logan?" Alec laughed angrily. "That is low."

"I didn't-"

"You did," he cut him off. "You don't like me. Especially right now. I get it. Honestly, I've spent my whole life not being liked. So what? But Max doesn't need you causing more problems. So you're gonna leave and not come back until she calls. Are we clear?"

"Alec, if you think I'm going to trust Max to you-"

"Logan, if you think crossing a completely amoral, trained assassin is a good idea, then by all means, keep standing here."

Alec stood firmly in front of the door, refusing to budge, and Logan seemed to sag. "Fine. I'll go. Just… just ask her to call me… when she's up to it."

Alec nodded curtly. "When she's ready, she'll call."

Logan paused, just looking at him for several more seconds, then finally left. Alec stepped back into the apartment. He knew Max'd been listening, but wasn't bothered by it. He'd already declared himself by kissing her. He didn't mind her knowing he was her personal guard dog, too.

"You hit him?"

"Not yet. I'm savin' it for a rainy day."

"This is Seattle, Alec. It's always raining."

"You know me." Alec smiled. "I like to keep my options open."

Max sighed sleepily. "My fault for bein' a bitch. He's just trying to be… Logan."

Alec rolled his eyes. Yeah, Logan, the knight in whining armor.

"The riot wasn't his fault. Wasn't my fault. Not really. Meeting woulda gone fine if someone hadn't leaked it to the press."

Alec had to bite his tongue to keep from snapping at her. It was the same thing he'd been arguing for days. There was simply no way it could have been kept from the press. Max was top priority on the news and her showing up at city hall would have spread like wildfire. All it took was one anti-transgenic janitor seeing her and it was over. It had been too dangerously uncontrolled an environment.

Alec walked into the other room and pulled a blanket off his bed. He came back and draped it over Max, who he saw had already drifted back to sleep. He was finishing tucking it in around her when his phone rang.

"Yeah?"

"_Get back here_," Mole said without preamble. "_We've got something you need to see_."

"On my way." Alec cast one last look at Max, then headed for the door.

* * *

_More soon…_


	5. Chapter 5

**Loose the Hounds**

Summary: A deadly riot is the catalyst for all kinds of change in Terminal City. MA.

_Okey dokey… enough chit chat for these two. Let's get this show on the road…_

Chapter Five

* * *

Alec strode into Command. "What do we have?"

"We're not sure who, but the sector cops definitely had a live one." Mole was standing at a table studying a map. "After the riot, they decided he was too much trouble and handed him off to the military."

This was what they'd been waiting for. They'd caught just a hint of chatter on the police band that might mean one of the team that had been with Max was still alive.

"White has him?" Alec asked.

"Regular military. Army. We hacked into the sector security cameras and found a small convoy leaving the city. Best guess is they've taken him to the base here." Mole pointed to a place on the map. "They were headed in that direction and it's higher security than these other two."

Alec nodded. No shortage of military bases when the country was on near permanent lockdown.

"We're sure they weren't just transporting a body for study?"

"It looked like they had a medical type in one of the trucks. If he was in as bad a shape as Max, he'd probably need it."

Alec crossed his arms, still staring at the map. "What else do we know?"

"We've got blueprints for the base. We just need a plan to get in and get out before they know what hit 'em."

Alec felt a calm settle over him, that peaceful, centered, pin-point precision of senses before a mission. It was easy after all these years, second nature. He looked at the map and the blueprints Mole spread out beside it on the table. Wouldn't be easy, but it had to be done. Whichever of the four this was, he'd helped save Max. For that, Alec owed him.

* * *

Max walked into Command and stopped in her tracks. She'd slept for what felt like forever and was feeling more herself, not so shaky mentally or physically. Her mind wouldn't let her rest anymore, so she'd decided she could sit in Command as well as sit in Alec's apartment.

Max looked around the cluttered space. Everyone was standing in one area, all looking at something, and Max could practically feel the tension rolling off of them. She walked toward the group and saw that they were clustered around the radio equipment and two small TV screens that were showing two different views of very shaky video.

"What's going on?" Max asked the group in general. Several people whipped around at the sound of her voice and she realized they'd been watching the screens so intently they hadn't noticed her coming up behind them.

Everyone turned back to the screens except for Dix. "They're inside the base."

"What base?"

"The base where they took one of your team that managed to survive somehow. Alec's gone in to get whoever it is."

Max heard a buzzing in her ears, nearly blocking everything else out. Someone had made it out. She hadn't managed to kill them all. The weight that had been pressing on her seemed to lighten just a bit, not much, but some. Dix had said they were inside a base, which meant the military had whoever it was. Then the other thing Dix had said registered.

"Alec?" she asked, her throat tight.

"Alec and two others." Dix handed her a small headset. "Don't talk unless you want them to hear you. The mic's live," he cautioned. "Alec and one of the others are wearing cameras so we can see what's happening."

Max looked at the screens again and realized what she was seeing now. Two video feeds, the picture bobbing with the wearer's steps, turning this way and that as the person's head turned. She put the headset on and immediately heard the faint sounds of the team breathing. One of the people in front of her stood up from a stool and waved for Max to come and take her place. Max nodded her thanks and sank down onto the seat, feeling as weak as a kitten.

Mole was sitting beside her, a headset like the one she was wearing on his head. He had blueprints spread out in front of him and was using a finger to track where the team was. It wasn't high-tech, but it was what they had right now.

"There should be another corridor about five yards in front of you," Mole said quietly. "There will be a staircase on your right leading down to the holding cells."

"_Copy that_." Alec's voice in her ear almost made her jump. Instead she stared fixedly at the two small screens.

Alec was in the lead, the camera he was wearing showing the hallway in front of them. The second camera was on the guy bringing up the rear, which meant she could see Alec as he moved forward. He was smooth, graceful, his entire body as finely tuned a weapon as the gun he was carrying. Max thought it would be a joy to watch if she weren't so terrified.

Max had already managed to get four people killed this week. Three, if the info was real and someone else had managed to survive the riot. She didn't know what she would do if three more died trying to fix her first disaster. She didn't know what she would do if it was Alec.

Alec… She had no idea what to do about him right now, but she knew she didn't want him dead. Alec had blindsided her with that kiss and she was still trying to sort everything out. She needed him back in Terminal City so she could do that.

The team was moving down the stairs. They stopped at the bottom and Alec checked to make sure the coast was clear.

"Left and the holding cells should be ten yards down," Mole murmured.

Alec gestured silently that there was a guard posted in between them and their goal. Before Max realized what he was going to do, Alec blurred down the hallway and knocked the guard unconscious. He then signaled for the other two men to follow.

As the team searched for the right holding cell, the video started swinging back and forth so rapidly that Max was afraid she might hurl. Abruptly, all movement stopped.

"_Marco_," she heard Alec whisper. The video feed steadied and she saw what Alec was seeing. He was peering through a small glass section in a heavy metal door. Inside was a bare cell with a concrete bench built into the back wall. Apparently, they'd decided a metal cot provided too many opportunities for someone like them.

Marco was lying on the bare concrete ledge. He looked like his injuries had been at least minimally tended, but his jailers' generosity had not extended so far as to give him a blanket.

Max heard noises, although she couldn't tell what was happening, and then the heavy metal door slid open. Alec stepped into the cell and carefully approached Marco.

"_How is he_?" one of the others asked.

Alec didn't answer. He leaned over the seemingly unconscious man, laying a hand on his shoulder. Marco's eyes blinked open and Max saw it took him a few extra seconds to focus. "_494_?"

"_Extraction team_," Alec said formally. "_Can you move_?"

Marco sat up, stifling a groan. He took a deep steadying breath and promptly keeled over. The second team member, the one not wearing a camera hurried into the cell and helped sit him back up. He then hefted the man in a fireman's carry.

Alec stood back to let the man and his precious cargo leave first. The instant Marco crossed the threshold, sirens started blaring and the cell door tried to slam closed as the base went into automatic lockdown. Alec grabbed the edge of the door and fought to keep it open. The man carrying Marco jumped forward to clear the door, barely making it before the mechanism closing it overcame Alec's strength.

"Alec!" Max couldn't help the involuntary outburst.

"_Max_?" Alec said surprised. His video feed was going in and out now, the signal not working as well inside the heavily reinforced cell.

"Alec, can you get out?"

"_Sorry, Maxie. Looks like I screwed up again_." His audio feed was breaking up, too.

Max put her hand over the mic. "Who else is with him?"

"Tigger and Bob."

She took her hand away from the mic. "Tigger, can you get the door open?"

"_On it_," the man answered curtly. His video tilted down to look at an electronics panel that they must have used to open the door the first time.

"_We've got incoming_," Bob, the one carrying Marco, said. Tigger glanced up at the other man and Max saw he was standing at the foot of the stairs looking up.

"How many?" Mole asked.

"_Enough_," Bob replied, his tone cool.

"_Bob, you need to displace_." Alec's voice, equally cool.

"_Affirmative_."

"_Take Marco and go_."

Tigger once again glanced up, his video camera's view shifting from the electronics panel to the door Alec was now locked behind to Bob at the foot of the stairs hefting Marco for a more secure hold, while ripping something from around Marco's ankle, probably whatever had set off the alarm.

"Belay that order," Max snapped. "Tigger, keep working."

"_It won't open_," Tigger answered, his voice not nearly as calm as his two companions. "_The alarm's rerouted all the security_."

"_I gave you an order_," Alec barked, his audio feed breaking up again. "_You take Marco and go. Come back for me when you can. Is that understood_?"

"_Affirmative_," Tigger said, automatically responding to the drill sergeant tone.

"Alec, no," Max said.

"_They're coming_," Bob called. "_Now or never, Tigger_."

"_Go_," Alec ordered. "_Now. Max, you know what has to be done here, so stop holding 'em up_," he added sternly.

Marco was hurt. Alec was healthy. He could last until they could rescue him. Marco might not make it that long.

Max closed her eyes, her fists tightly clenched, her gut roiling, _every_ instinct telling her this was wrong. "Go," she finally said, "Bring Marco home," while her mind screamed at her for what she was doing.

Tigger's video feed showed Bob as he and Tigger worked to evade the soldiers searching for them, but Max's eyesight had dwindled to almost a pinpoint. Alec had taken off his camera and was aiming it at himself. He was all she could see.

"_So I guess I'll be staying put for a while_." Alec gave her a resigned smile.

"We'll come back, Alec."

"_No hurry_," he said nonchalantly, although Max could see the tension causing wrinkles at the corners of his eyes. "_Second verse, same as the first. Has me kinda nostalgic_." He looked around the bare cell. "_Haven't been locked up in solitary in a whole year_."

The video feed completely changed to static and Max almost threw the screen in frustration. A second later the signal returned, however.

"Just hold tight, Alec," she managed. "Don't do anything stupid."

Alec grinned at that, though it quickly faltered. "_I wish I could see you_."

Max barely restrained herself from reaching out and trailing her fingers over his face on the screen. "I'm here. I'm not leaving," she said instead. The video broke up again, static replacing his picture for several seconds this time before it returned. Alec was saying something, but the audio didn't come through.

"Alec? Alec, we're losing your signal. Just hold tight," she said again. "We're coming."

He nodded, then his eyes snapped up and Max knew there was someone at the cell door. Alec looked back at the camera, at her. "_You be good, Maxie. Gotta go_."

The screen turned permanently to static. Either they'd completely lost the signal or Alec had turned off the transmitter so they wouldn't see what came next. She had a sinking feeling it was the second option.

Whatever the case, Alec was gone.

* * *

_Y'all thought I could get through a story without Alec in peril?!? More soon…_


	6. Chapter 6

**Loose the Hounds**

Summary: A deadly riot is the catalyst for all kinds of change in Terminal City. MA.

_Thanks for all the kind reviews and a special thank you to those of you I can't reply to! _

_A chapter to get us from A to B._

Chapter Six

* * *

No one in the group surrounding Max said a word. For her part, Max doubted she had the strength to move. Alec had ordered the others to leave him behind and she had backed the decision.

Alec had practically begged her not to go to city hall, to find someplace more secure for a meeting. Alec had taken care of her when it failed. Alec had turned the disaster to their advantage.

Alec had kissed her.

Alec had gone on a mission trying to fix her mess and become the victim himself. He was locked in that cell because of her.

Someone reached in front of Max and turned off the screen. She ripped the headset off, barely registering the fact that Mole was once again guiding Tigger and Bob out of the complex, listening to their hushed reports of where the soldiers were blocking their exit.

She couldn't watch. She couldn't watch them leave Alec behind. Not when she'd given the order.

Max stumbled away, certain she was going to be sick.

_You're poison. You destroy everyone that you love…_

She'd done nothing but rag on Alec for months, and he'd still stuck by her. She'd never asked why, just taken his presence for granted as things got worse and worse and he continued to stay when her general opinion of him said he should have disappeared and left her to deal with it all.

Alec had turned off the camera, isolating himself to save them from seeing what happened to him. Alec was braver than she'd given him credit for. More honest, too. He'd come to a decision about her and just flat out told her with that kiss.

_I thought you were gone and I… I didn't handle it well._

She would get him back. She had to.

* * *

Max paced back and forth in Command. Everyone gave her a wide berth. She'd been pacing for so long she was surprised she hadn't worn a track into the concrete floor.

Five days. Five. They'd moved Alec almost as soon as they'd discovered that the cell had a new occupant and so far there was no trace of him.

For five days. F-I-V-E, five. Max was afraid to think what could have happened to Alec in that time. As a matter of fact, she was absolutely refusing to think about it. If she did, she'd go nuts.

Leave it to Alec to kiss and run. It wasn't totally his fault, but still… Typical.

Max scratched her head. Her hair was growing back in and the itching was only making her more irritable if that were possible. If one more thing went wrong, Max was either going to scream, hit something or start crying. She wasn't sure which was first on the list right now. They were all running neck and neck.

"Hey, Fearless Leader," Mole called.

Max stopped pacing and turned. She ordered herself not to let any hope build. The first four hundred times someone had called her name, she'd dared to hope they had a line on Alec, but it had only been to tell her about yet another dead end, or to give her an update on one of a million other things they were dealing with, or to tell her that someone had brought her something to eat.

"What?"

"Your ordinary wants to talk to you."

"He's not my ordinary," Max muttered under her breath, but began trudging toward the little camera that would allow Logan to see her while they talked.

She was almost completely healed and was certainly thinking more clearly than when she'd just come back from the riot. She could barely believe how easy it had been to lean on Alec and let him take care of everything. If she hadn't been so out of it, she'd have pushed him aside. Alec would have stayed with her, done what she asked, but the results wouldn't have been the same. She'd never have considered going to the press. She'd have probably gone back to Logan, asked him for advice. They'd have kept going in their awkward, frustrating, not to mention dangerous, non-relationship relationship sort of way.

But now she felt… different, somehow. It was like Alec's kiss, his calm declaration that he cared about her, had changed everything. She felt free somehow. And scared.

She hadn't been processing well after the riot. She'd known Logan had sent her there and Alec hadn't wanted her to go. She'd known it had gone horribly wrong. That she and Logan were wrong and Alec had been right. All she'd been able to think was that trusting Logan had got her hurt, and Alec could keep her safe until she was better.

Now that the dust had settled, Max knew Logan wasn't really at fault for what happened. His heart had been in the right place. He'd been trying to help her and all the other transgenics locked up in Terminal City. They'd made a mistake in how they went about it, but she didn't blame him. That, however, did not change the fact that the distance between them felt even greater than ever. Logan had jealously worked to put down all of Alec's ideas that in hindsight seemed so logical that she really had to have been a moron to have ignored him. It made her wonder what else she'd missed because she'd been clinging so hard to the idea of Logan.

Max stepped in front of the camera, the screen below it showing Logan's face. "Hey."

"_Hi, Max. How are you feeling_?"

"Good." She wasn't telling anyone about the lingering twitchiness she got when surrounded by more than a handful of people. As for her and Logan, they had already spoken several times, each conversation as strained as the last. He knew she didn't blame him, not completely anyway. She blamed herself more than anyone for making such a bad call. So she and Logan had promptly gone back to their business-only conversations and she had him looking for Alec along with everyone else. "Anything on Alec?"

"_No, nothing yet_," he said, not quite able to look her in the eye.

She knew he still hoped to change her mind, but every day that Alec was gone, the more desperate she was to rescue him and the less she felt the need to talk to Logan.

"_The mayor has agreed to a new meeting. The media's been putting a lot of pressure on him and he's agreed to terms_."

"What terms?" Max half-remembered talking about this the last time they spoke, but it was hard to give a rat's ass about what was going on with the mayor or anyone else outside TC except Alec.

"_The sector police will already be on duty before the meeting to keep any protestors at bay. They've agreed to use the building just outside TC and you can bring as big a security contingent as you feel is needed._"

"Fine," Max said, trying to care. She knew it was necessary for the survival of everyone in TC and she'd do what she had to, but she was almost tempted to ask Logan and the others to just take care of it. Bureaucratic chit-chat had never been her thing. She got bored too easily and had a tendency to hit people who were pissing her off.

Max wished she could go back to the old days. Life had been so much simpler when it was just her and Logan. A little burglary, a job here and there for Eyes Only. A little pleasant sexual tension that had the promise of turning into something more.

Then Alec had walked into her cell, all smart-mouthed swagger and sex. Nothing had been the same after that. Manticore had gone down, the transgenics had gone on the lam, she and Logan had never quite managed to click…

On the other hand, maybe it was simpler this way. No more hiding what they were. No more on-again, off-again relationship Logan. Just Alec and making sure everyone had food, clothing and shelter.

"_Max_?"

She could tell from Logan's tone it wasn't the first time he'd tried to get her attention. She mentally rewound the last few phrases she'd only been partially listening to. "Yeah. 14:00 tomorrow. We'll be there." There was a commotion behind her and Max turned to see Marco standing in the entrance. "Gotta go." Max shut the link down before Logan could respond.

Marco looked like death warmed over. Rumor had it, he just sat in the apartment he'd shared with Polo staring off into nothing.

Max approached him carefully, although she might as well not have bothered. He was watching her, but his eyes were dull, lifeless. He couldn't have cared less whether she talked to him or not. The only reason he was here was because Max had asked him to come.

"Hey, Marco."

"Ma'am," he said formally.

"How you feelin'?"

"Satisfactory, ma'am."

Max tried not to let it bother her that he was treating her like a CO. The guy was in a bad place and when the crap hit the fan, a person's brain had a tendency to run home to mama. That meant Max just got bitchier and more standoffish when stressed, but the others tended to retreat into soldier mode.

"You getting any sleep?"

"Enough, ma'am."

Max sighed and grabbed Marco by the arm. She dragged him with her into a small room to one side where there was an old beat-up couch, a couple of chairs and a TV that they'd been using as a sort of break room for when they got tired of staring at each other in the main room. There was a guy sitting on the sofa. She gave a quick jerk of her head and he quickly disappeared.

Max pushed Marco down to sit on the couch. She grabbed one of the chairs and sat in front of him, but with enough space that he wouldn't feel crowded. "So tell me what's going on with you."

"Ma'am?"

"Max," she corrected. "I'm not your boss, Marco. I just wanna know how you're doin'."

"Satisfactory, ma'- Max."

"Funny. You look like death on a cracker."

"Ma'am?" he said, for the first time really focusing on her in his effort to understand.

Max resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Some of the newbies still sucked in the language skills department. Alec picked up anything and everything. He got the gist whether he understood the actual words or not, but not all of the Xs assimilated as easily. "You look like crap."

"Oh."

She waited to see if he would say more, but nothing followed. "I didn't get a chance to thank you… about… before."

Marco gave a weak flap of his hand, unable to meet her gaze. "S'ok."

"No, it's not," she said quietly. Marco was in this state because of her. He'd physically healed in the past few days, but he was most definitely not all right. "I'm sorry about Polo."

"S'ok," he whispered. He crossed his arms, trying to shut himself off from her, to block her out, or to keep himself in. Maybe both.

"No, it's not," she said again. "He… you and Polo… I'm sorry."

Marco nodded, still not looking at her.

"You saved me. Both of you."

Marco just nodded again.

"He was your partner? You two always worked together?"

"He was my brother." And right in front of her, she watched a man crumble. Any tiny spark of life she'd seen in him, sputtered out and died, leaving him a shell, a dry husk. He was still breathing, but it wouldn't take long before all that was left of him was dust that would blow away in the next breeze.

"We were paired before we could talk." Marco's voice was as dry and raspy as the rest of him. "We bunked together, trained together, fought together…" His dull eyes shifted toward her. "You understand?"

Max nodded to get him to keep talking.

"Did you know we only had one designation?"

"What?"

"We were never meant to be apart. We were two halves of a whole. We worked in perfect sync." Marco's gaze shifted toward the TV behind her. He watched it in silence for several moments, his breathing shallow, and Max was afraid to know what he was seeing. They normally kept the TV on the news channel. Marco's expression didn't change. He just continued to watch with dead eyes.

She wondered how long it would take Marco to starve to death. Transgenics had metabolisms that required constant feeding. Their engines just ran too fast and they needed fuel or they sputtered and died. No one had seen Marco eat in five days and Max was at a loss as to what to do about that.

Marco shifted listlessly. "If one of us was punished, we were both punished. If one of us went to psy-ops, we both went. Even when we were so scared we couldn't breathe, or we hated them so much we just wanted to kill them all and run… We… no matter what, we still had us. It was the only thing Manticore ever did right."

Max didn't know what to say. She knew about loss. Even though they'd been separated for years, she still felt the loss of every last one of her brothers and sisters. But this… this was more than that. She'd never trusted someone like that, trusted her whole life, been part of someone's whole existence since the day she was born…

Marco rubbed a hand across his chest like it hurt. "I can't… This doesn't work without him. None of it," he whispered hollowly. "I'm not… _me_… without him."

"Marco, you gotta give it time…" Max trailed off when he started shaking his head.

"You feel it," he said quietly.

"Huh?"

"Alec."

"What about him?" Max asked past the sudden constriction in her throat.

Marco's lips quirked the tiniest bit. "You're not right without him, are you? You feel like there's a hole." He laid his hand flat over his heart. Max didn't say anything and Marco sat back, sinking into the sofa cushions. "We all see you. We know what he is to you." His breath hitched slightly. "It's not like when the ordinary's gone, is it? He doesn't understand. But Alec does. He's the same as you."

"Alec and I are nothing alike," Max couldn't help saying. He was… Alec. He was all relaxed, smart-ass, devil-may-care attitude and Max was probably too uptight and serious for her own good.

"Yes and no." Marco closed his eyes as if it were too much trouble to keep them open. "P-Polo," he stumbled over the name, "he… we were built for codependence. It's why we worked. We were a matched pair. You and Alec… It's different, but you match, too. You are both so independent. You survive on your own. You don't really need anyone else. Yet you mirror each other, work in harmony _because_ of that instead of despite it. You are so alike, so sure of yourselves. You…" Marco shook his head. "If he doesn't come back, you'll live. But you won't be the same either."

Max felt the words like a slap to the face, stinging in how true they felt. Alec had only been with her for a year, a large part of that spent at odds with each other, or at least on her end, but still he'd stayed, helping her protect the others, protecting her. He'd worked with her, side by side, and she couldn't imagine what it would be like if he left her to do this alone.

She'd seen the real Alec when Berrisford had popped up to taunt him. She'd seen him the night she told him about Ben. The night Annie died. She'd seen him again, the real Alec, the deadly serious, dangerous Alec, after she'd come back from the riot. She and Alec kept everyone at bay, pushed each other away, lived in separate worlds, but they kept coming back to each other, fighting side by side to get the job done, to take care of each other, as if they'd known and relied on each other for years.

Marco was right. It felt wrong working without him now. The first person she would turn to in a situation like this was Alec. She felt… off… like she was missing a vital part of herself, doing this without him, even if _this_ was rescuing Alec. She'd never felt this sort of loss when she was away from Logan. Eyes Only was constantly sending her out on her own. And who had she turned to, to go with her? Alec…

Max closed her eyes, suddenly feeling as hollow as Marco appeared to be, wishing Alec was there with her to smirk and tell her to suck it up. The jerk wasn't allowed to kiss and run. He wasn't. He wasn't allowed to wake her up out off her Logan-induced haze, then get his ass captured and… and… whatever they were doing to him now.

Max viciously rubbed her fingers into her closed eyes. She wasn't sure when she turned into such a whiner who cried over her man, but she didn't have time for a breakdown right now.

Max took a deep breath, dropped her hands to rest on her legs and opened her eyes. While she'd been having her little inner monologue, Marco had apparently stretched out on the couch. He looked to be sleeping, if not peacefully, then as close as he could get to it right now. Maybe he'd make it, maybe he wouldn't. Hard to tell when a person's life was so screwed up they could barely see straight.

Max jumped when her cell phone vibrated against her hip. She pulled it out of her pocket and flipped it open angrily.

"What?" She was met with only silence, although she thought she could hear normal street sounds in the background. "Whoever this is, you better start talking."

"_Ma_-" She heard whoever it was swallow audibly. "_Max_?"

"Alec?" Max barely managed to force the name out.

"_H-help me_."

* * *

_More soon..._


	7. Chapter 7

**Loose the Hounds**

Summary: A deadly riot is the catalyst for all kinds of change in Terminal City. MA.

_Last chapter, Alec was calling for help…_

Chapter Seven

* * *

"Alec, where are you?" Max demanded. She was already on her feet, stalking back into Command. At the sound of his name and the sight of her on her phone, silence fell over the room.

"_M-Max_?"

"Yes, it's me. Now, where are you?"

"_Don't… don't know. Don't know_." The words were breathless, pained.

"Alec, I'll come get you, but I need to know where you are," she said, panic beginning to surface. She could tell from the background noise he was outside. He'd somehow managed to escape, but something was very, very wrong.

Alec let out a strangled sound, meant to be a laugh. "_Y-you expect a s-screw up like me to get anything done right the first time_?"

His words were badly slurred and Max wondered if he'd been drugged. "Are you in Seattle?" For all she knew, he could be on the other side of the country. They had no idea where he'd been taken after they'd removed him from the base.

The line was silent and Max could once again hear normal street noises in the background. "Alec?"

"_I… It… it smells like Seattle_."

"Ok, good. What do you see around you? We'll find you." She covered the receiver with her other hand. "Somebody hack into the hover drones. He's here somewhere." Focusing back on the call, Max heard shuffling then a sort of thud and guessed he'd been trying to get up, but fallen back down. "Alec?"

"_Sorry. Can't… can't see_."

"Tell me what's going on?"

Alec cleared his throat uncertainly. "_I, uh… My eyes aren't working so well, Maxie. Everything's kinda fuzzy_."

"Try harder," she ordered. "Give me something to work with, Alec, or your butt's getting left out there."

"_S'great, Max_," he sighed. "_Thanks for the pep talk_."

His slurring was getting worse and Max gripped her phone so tightly she heard the plastic creak. "Alec, stay awake!"

He made a choking noise, one of the most awful noises she'd ever heard. He sounded broken. "_Don't… don't think… that'll be a problem_."

"What?"

"_Hang on, Maxie._" There was a pause and she heard him struggling to move again. "_Hey_!_ Hey, buddy_!" Alec's voice was farther away and she guessed he was holding the phone away from his mouth. Max heard a muffled response. "_Yeah, I, uh… had a rough night_." She could hear him trying to force his normal carefree friendliness into his tone. "_Can you tell me where I am_?" There were more noises and Max wished she knew what was going on. "_Yeah, man. Best party I ever been to. Got a little turned around this morning_."

Whoever Alec was talking to must have finally stepped closer because Max heard him clearly this time. "_Must have been the party of the century, pal. You don't look so great_."

Max wanted to scream at the man to just freaking tell her where Alec was before she reached through the phone and ripped his head off. Alec was working for all he was worth to keep up the pleasant façade and this guy was wasting time.

"_You want me to call somebody for ya_?" the other guy asked.

"_S'ok. The cavalry's on its way_." Max heard a shuffling noise and guessed he was holding up the phone. "_Just need to know where_."

"_This is Davis St_," the guy said. "_That's, uhh… Morgan, maybe, down there_?"

"_Good, s'good_," Alec said, suddenly sounding years past exhausted. "_Max, you hear that_?"

She jumped at his voice being once again loud in her ear. "I'm on my way. Just hold on, Alec."

"_Buddy, you sure you're ok? You want me to_-"

"_I'm good_," Alec said, once again working to sound more aware. "_I got the hottest chick you've ever seen comin' to pick me up_." Max could hear the smile in his voice, although it was a shadow of the one she was used to. "_She's gonna kick my ass for going to that party though_."

"_Well, passin' out in an alley ain't exactly the way to charm 'em, mister_."

Max heard Alec snort. "_Pretty sure she's immune to my charm, but thanks for the tip_."

"Alec, you wanna quit discussing me with some random jerk on the street?" Max snapped, worry making her even more waspish than usual. Alec was back to slurring no matter how hard he was trying to convince the guy he was fine.

"_Sorry, Maxie_," he mumbled.

"_You, uhh… you sure you're good, pal? I got somewhere to be_."

"_Yeah_," Alec said. "_Thanks, man. You're a lifesaver_."

"_No problem. I saw you on TV, ya know_."

Max nearly dropped the phone, she was so surprised. Of course, the guy would have seen Alec. Every station in the country had been playing that interview non-stop for days. Max had been so worried, it hadn't even occurred to her that Alec would be recognized.

"_Yeah_?" Alec said, tension vibrating across the phone line.

"_Yeah. I'm guessing that party you went to wasn't much fun_."

There was a pause, then finally Alec cleared his throat. "_Coulda been better_."

"_That girl from the interview the one you're talking to on the phone_?"

"_That's her_."

Max heard more shuffling as the phone was taken out of Alec's hand. "_Your friend's in bad shape. I gotta go, but he's in the alley across from the little Italian deli on Davis_."

"Tell him I'm on my way," Max ordered.

"_Sure. You guys, uhh… good luck… with the mayor and all. We're not all assholes in this town_."

* * *

Max hit the ground running. Logan had stopped Bessie in front of the deli and Max was already moving. She crossed the street, daring anyone to get in her way.

It had decided to start pouring rain on their way here and she wiped a hand across her eyes to clear her vision. The alley was a dingy garbage pit like most alleys in the city. At first there was no sign of Alec, but then she saw a foot sticking out past a short set of concrete stairs leading up to a slime covered door.

She hurried down the alley and he finally came into view. Alec was sitting on the ground, his legs stretched out in front of him, leaning back against the brick wall with his head down, resting on his chest.

"Alec?"

He raised bleary, deeply sunken eyes, blinking rain out of them. His head lolled back on his neck as if he didn't have the strength to hold it up.

"Hey, Max." The grin he gave her was nearly skeletal his skin was so gray and drawn. "Come to rescue me?" He was wearing a black t-shirt and a pair of pants she'd never seen before, both soaked through from the rain. She could see he was shaking slightly, although she didn't know if it was from the cold or from something else.

"We gotta get you back to TC," Max said, trying for matter-of-fact. "You're a big celebrity these days. Don't want you gettin' swamped by your fans."

"S'ok, Maxie." Alec's eyes were wandering and Max had the feeling they weren't focusing properly. "You'll always be my number one groupie."

"In your dreams."

Alec went very still, his expression suddenly serious. "Frequently."

"I…" Max blinked. He'd done it again. Simply put it right out there that he wanted her. No hiding or doubts or subterfuge. He'd made a few comments before, but she'd never taken him seriously. At the time he probably hadn't wanted to be taken seriously. The riot had changed all that.

"S'a red letter day," he said, his words running together. His head fell forward again. "Max is speechless."

Alec started to slump further and she quickly knelt at his side, ignoring the slop on the ground. She put one hand on his back and felt a shudder run through him. He leaned into her and she guessed he'd been using the last of his energy to keep himself upright. He was still holding the cell phone and Max reached for it. Alec's hand clamped down on it and refused to let her take it.

"No," he mumbled, "waiting for Max," despite the fact that his head was leaning on her shoulder.

"I'm already here, Alec." She used her free hand to wipe the rain from his face. "I'll hold onto it for you, ok?"

"'Kay," he said and allowed her to pry the phone from his freezing fingers.

"Where'd you even get it?"

Alec gestured vaguely, pointing further down the alley and Max saw another pair of legs sticking out behind a dumpster. Max set Alec back against the brick, rose and hurried toward the body. The steelhead was lying on his side, a nice-sized bruise forming on his jaw. Max shoved the cell phone in the guy's pocket and jogged back to Alec. He'd fallen over in the few seconds she'd been gone, nearly face-down in the muck.

Max pushed him upright, grabbed one arm, slid her hand around his back under his other arm, and hauled him up. To her surprise, he was still conscious and forcing him to stand seemed to have woken him further.

"He ok?" Alec asked.

"He's fine." Honestly Max couldn't care less. She was concerned about exactly one person right now.

"Don't know why… have cell phones anyway. All that hardware's… gotta screw with the… reception."

Max rolled her eyes. She pulled an arm across her shoulders and wrapped a hand around his waist, slipping her fingers through one of his belt loops.

"You ready?" she asked.

"No," he answered, but she felt him brace himself and take a little more of his own weight.

"Logan's car is just across the street."

"Hate it when he has to save me."

Max snorted. "Well, you _had_ been shot last time."

"Gives him delusions of grandeur."

"Cause everybody knows he lives to lord it over you."

"Yeah, pretty much," Alec replied without even a trace of sarcasm, only exhausted acceptance.

Max thought of how hard and how jealously Logan had fought Alec's ideas in the days before the riot. She wondered how many snide comments from Logan Alec had set aside. She hated to think how many of her own he had simply shrugged off, or at least seemed to.

They'd reached the street by that point and Max stowed her questions for later. Alec pulled his arm from her shoulders and stood on his own. When he started to sway, Max put her arm through his and held tight. It didn't look like she was holding him up, but the effect was the same as she guided him across the street.

Max pulled open the back door and Alec tumbled inside. She hurried in after him and nodded for Logan to drive.

First, Alec was sitting up, then he was leaning on her shoulder. Next thing she knew, his head was in her lap and she was running her fingers through his wet hair. He made a sound, a whimper, so quiet she doubted Logan heard it, but it was like a horn blaring in her ears.

"Go to sleep, Alec," she urged.

In response, he brought a shaking hand up to his head and let out a terrible sobbing noise. Max curled forward, wrapping herself around him. "Alec?"

"Max?" Logan asked worriedly.

She met his gaze in the rearview mirror. "Drive faster."

* * *

_More soon…_


	8. Chapter 8

**Loose the Hounds**

Summary: A deadly riot is the catalyst for all kinds of change in Terminal City. MA.

_I've been called in for overtime, which means this is gonna have to be a short one. Sorry about that._

Chapter Eight

* * *

"He'll be fine, Max," Logan said, trying to be comforting.

Max clenched her teeth tightly to keep from yelling at him. Logan didn't understand. He wasn't the one feeling how badly Alec was trembling. He couldn't hear the tiny, pained noises that Alec was trying so hard to stifle. He couldn't feel the feverish warmth radiating from him now that they were out of the rain.

"There's something wrong," she said, looking down at Alec where his head still rested in her lap. "They must have done something to him."

"He's an X-Series," Logan answered. "He just needs time."

Logan acted like a transgenic was indestructible, but Max had lost too many brothers and sisters, too many friends to believe it. She'd foolishly allowed herself to agree with him before the riot, believed they could go to the meeting unnoticed, and three all-too-vulnerable Xs had died. Max just shook her head, feeling impossibly far away from the man in the front seat.

"Max?"

She looked up again and she could see it on his face. He wanted to talk. Now of all times, with Alec in her arms and in such horrible shape, and Logan wanted to talk. On the way to pick up Alec, she'd purposely ignored Logan's sighs and attempts to draw her out, and she wasn't any more interested in discussing their non-relationship now.

Loving someone shouldn't make a person this miserable, she thought distantly, especially when they'd never really been together in the first place. She'd never had a honeymoon period where everything was rainbows, moonbeams, and unconditional acceptance of each other's quirks. Instead, they'd had a troubled working relationship that had developed into a painful, impossible, misery-inducing romantic relationship.

"I kissed Alec." The words were past her lips before she knew she was going to say them.

Logan's mouth dropped open. "Wh- what?"

"I kissed him. He… we… After the riot…" She could feel herself blushing at the memory, but forced herself to hold his gaze. They weren't together anymore. There was no reason to feel guilty. Still, she felt a need to say something to ease the awkwardness, not that it was really possible. "Logan, you and I just won't work. I can't do it anymore."

"So you kiss him?"

"Yeah," she said, a touch of belligerence creeping into her tone. _It was good. It was easy. It felt wonderful. I felt free. I felt wanted without any of the painful strings attached_. She thought it all, but all she added was, "Yeah, I did."

Logan looked away, staring out the windshield, out the side window, at the steering wheel, anywhere but at her, and Max was fine with that. She was tired of breaking it off with him again and again, only to have him come back because she hadn't been firm enough, or had let herself fall back into old, dangerous patterns.

Max pulled her cell phone out of her pocket, and dialed Command.

"_What_?" Mole barked.

"I'm bringing him in. I want a full detail at the front gates. We're gonna have to keep the crowd and the reporters back when we walk him in."

"_You're bringing him in the _front? _Are you nuts_?"

Max ran her fingers through Alec's disheveled hair. She couldn't seem to quit touching him. She knew she was desperate for human contact. Max was just sorry that this was how she was getting it. But she'd been missing him for five days and now he was here where she could see and touch him again.

"No more hiding," she told Mole. "Alec's in bad shape and I don't want any hold-ups trying to sneak him in. Logan's going to pull up as close to the gates as he can manage. You guys make us a corridor and we'll walk him through. I want them to see what they've done."

There weren't nearly as many protesters since the riot. Alec's interview had done exactly what he'd intended. The transgenics weren't just an abstract evil now. They were walking, talking _people_. They were recognizable faces. Alec had _humanized_ them. It was hard to want to kill someone when they gave painfully honest interviews informing you that you'd murdered actual people, friends, brothers, national heroes.

Alec had done that for the transgenics, and Max was going to make sure his hard work didn't go to waste. There were far fewer protesters now, but more reporters. She was going to make sure they got a good look at what five days' difference had made for Alec.

"It's gonna be touch and go," Max admitted, "but if it doesn't turn into a disaster, we can make a statement to the press. We'll look nice and downtrodden. It'll put more pressure on the mayor for tomorrow's meeting."

Mole made a mock sniffing noise. "_Manipulating the public. Pretty Boy will be so proud of you_."

"Hope so." Alec groaned suddenly, curling up on the seat. "Alec? Alec, what is it?"

"_What's goin' on_?" Mole demanded.

Alec drew his arms in closer to his chest, making a futile attempt to ease the pain. "No more," he mumbled. "No more questions."

Or at least that's what Max thought he said. His words were badly slurred, worse than before, and once again Max wondered if they'd drugged him. "Alec, did they give you something? Drugs or something?" She grabbed his arm and straightened it, frightened when he didn't put up any resistance. There were definite needle tracks. "Alec, what did they give you?"

"Questions. Hurts."

"_What's he saying_?"

"He keeps saying something about questions." There was silence on the line for several seconds, but Max could tell it wasn't the good kind. "What?"

"_They drugged him during an interrogation_?" Mole finally asked.

"Alec?" Max bent down closer to him again. "Alec, they drugged you to get you to talk?"

"Tried to stop 'em," Alec gasped out. "Told 'em not to." He twisted on the seat, his back arching. He turned so that instead of facing the front of the car, he was facing her. He wrapped an arm around her, pressing his face into her stomach, desperate for some sort of comfort. "Fought 'em… escaped… too late." She could feel his hot breath against her skin through the cloth of her shirt.

"It's gonna be fine, Alec. Just relax."

"_It ain't gonna be fine, princess_," Mole snapped.

"What? Why?"

"_Cause Manticore made sure its favorite kiddies wouldn't get a chance to give up anything under interrogation_."

"What are you talking about, Mole?"

"_The Xs were permanently treated so that all the standard interrogation drugs react with their systems_."

"React how?"

"_You ever know anything Manticore cooked up to have a good reaction_?" That didn't even deserve an answer so Max just waited. "_If anybody got caught, Manticore didn't want 'em to have the chance to talk. So they made sure their field personnel couldn't_."

"What? They gave him the drugs to lower his inhibitions, but screwed up his system instead? Like an allergy? Made him sick?"

"_Worse. They were trying to get him to talk, but they killed him instead. He's been poisoned, Max_."

* * *

_Short, but still managed to find a nice evil place to end the chapter... Didn't want y'all to feel slighted. More soon…_


	9. Chapter 9

**Loose the Hounds**

Summary: A deadly riot is the catalyst for all kinds of change in Terminal City. MA.

_Very sorry the last chapter was so short… Sometimes, I think I might be working for Manticore…_

Chapter Nine

* * *

"Alec's been poisoned?"

"_Pretty much_," Mole grunted in disgust. "_Effect's the same anyway. The drugs are basically lethal to the Xs. Manticore developed a different set of drugs they used when they wanted to do their own interrogating._"

"Isn't that kinda… wasteful? We were expensive after all and brainwashed not to say a word no matter what," Max observed, freshly appalled at Manticore's callous treatment of them, hoping that this wasn't as dire a situation as it sounded.

"_You got caught and didn't get yourself out, you were damaged goods_," Mole answered. "_Obviously an inferior product. Trust me, it was real incentive not to get caught, and if you did, you busted yourself out real, real fast._"

Max looked down at Alec, his face still pressed into her stomach, turned just slightly upward. She set her hand against his flushed cheek and let the tips of her fingers slide into his hair.

"Idiot. Got yourself in trouble again," she couldn't help murmuring. She didn't know whether he heard her or not, but the arm wrapped behind her tightened fractionally. She cleared her throat and forced herself to focus. First things first. "Just give us a path to the gates, Mole."

"_Done_."

Max tucked her phone back in her pocket before bringing her hand back to rest on the top of Alec's head. Now that she knew what was going on, she was even more desperate to keep him close.

_Killed. Poisoned. Lethal._

Max was directly responsible for this. Maybe it had been dangerous for her to be the one to pick him up, but she couldn't have sent one of the others. She couldn't endanger another transgenic. She just couldn't. Not after the riot. Not for this. Alec getting caught was her fault and she had to be the one to fix it. The only reason Logan was along was because he was already outside TC and she'd needed a car.

"Max?"

She looked up and saw Logan watching her in the mirror again. He was still angry, silently fuming that she'd kissed Alec, maybe rightly so since she'd been standing on a rooftop holding Logan's hand not two weeks before. At least he was sober this time. And at least it was real. If she was going to break his heart again, then at least it was because of the truth.

"What?" she demanded. He obviously didn't want to talk to her, but he was still looking at her expectantly.

"You wanna tell me what's going on?" he shot back, equally annoyed.

"Oh." Max was so used to being around people who could hear both sides of a phone conversation, she'd forgotten it wasn't the norm. "The drugs they used to loosen him up are poisoning him," she explained, her throat tightening. The more she said it, the more disastrously real it became. "Apparently Manticore had all their field people doctored that way."

Max wished she could burn the place to the ground all over again. Just how many sociopathic bastards could one place come up with? Torturing, killing their own creations, all in the name of science and patriotism.

"Max, you ok?"

"Fine," she bit out through clenched teeth. Fine for feeling homicidal.

They fell silent again as they drew closer and closer to TC. Logan was having to watch the road to bully his way past news crews, sector police, protesters, military types, etc, anyone who'd planted themselves outside Terminal City. For her part, Max couldn't seem to see anything but Alec. He was burning with fever and still trembling. Sitting in the alley in the pouring rain certainly hadn't helped. His skin was gray and dull beneath the flush. Those lips that had been so soft against hers were now cracked and drawn. His long, long lashes were clumped together with rain and sweat.

The car came to a sudden halt and Max realized she was surrounded by an unbelievable roar of noise. The car was quickly swarmed by people with cameras. Bright news crew lights and camera flashes blinded her. After several seconds, the sea of people abruptly parted on the side closest to where she was sitting. Cameras continued to flash but from farther away.

"Max?" Logan had turned around to look at her from the front seat.

"Yeah?"

He opened his mouth to say something, then closed it again. He glanced down at Alec, then up at her, then past her to the crowd outside. "Just… take care of yourself, ok?"

Max nodded. That was Logan. There was a reason she always came back to him. He really was a good guy. He wasn't meant to be hers, but he was a good man. "You too. Once we're out of the car, you should go. The reporters'll be watching us, so you should make a break for it while you can."

"Yeah," he said, looking like that wasn't what he wanted to say at all. "Ok."

Max eased from beneath Alec. Someone opened her door for her and she got out of the car to the accompaniment of a storm of flashbulbs. She just stood there for a moment. Max wasn't letting Alec out until she knew he would be safe. She'd already lost three people in a riot that she'd led them into. Alec was hurting because of her decisions. She wasn't going to add one more mistake to her tally.

It had stopped raining at some point and for that small mercy she was grateful. Max looked from side to side and instead of a line of reporters or protestors, she saw a line of transgenics. On both sides of the car forming a corridor to the gates, X-series and transhumans stood side by side to form a barrier the reporters didn't dare touch, let alone cross.

Many of the photographers appeared to be taking as many pictures of the array of transhumans on display as they were of Max, understandable since the transhumans had very purposely kept away from the cameras until now. Apparently everyone else had also decided they were done hiding after the riot. It was Mole who'd opened her door and who was standing beside her now, her very own cigar-smoking, scaly-armored bodyguard.

Once again, she realized it was Alec who'd made the difference. The guy claimed to help her out of boredom, but he showed up again and again bridging the gap between failure and coming home safely. He claimed not to care, but got himself shot to make her Disney version happen, got himself shot again helping Joshua, Gem, Mole and the others.

Joshua had told her it was Alec during the Jam Pony thing who'd taken charge without a second thought, then just as easily turned command over to her when she arrived. She couldn't count how many other times he'd simply stepped in, helping her, backing her, just handling it when she couldn't. It was Alec who'd set up the interview after the riot, fearlessly put himself on display to help the others. He'd taken the first step to properly introduce them to the world. Max had convinced the others to stay together, but it was Alec who'd convinced them to step out into the light of day.

Max had been so blind. Her feelings for Logan had blinded her to what was happening with Alec. Logan's own dislike had egged her on, not that she'd needed much egging, and all of it had resulted in the worst-case scenario of the riot. Not only was she blind, she was an idiot, but she wasn't going to make the same mistake again.

Max assured herself that they weren't going to be overrun, then turned back to the car. Alec was still lying awkwardly across the back seat. She reached in, put her hands under his arms and pulled him toward her. Alec's eyes flew open and he struggled weakly against her to sit up. He managed it, but expended his burst of energy in about two seconds. Max grabbed his legs and pulled him toward her, setting his feet on the ground. She then leaned in and wrapped her arms around him.

"Not that kinda girl," he mumbled. "You wanna dance… should ask first."

Max ignored him. "Come on, Alec. Almost there. Just gotta make it through the crowd." He didn't respond, so she simply pulled him up and out of the car. Alec staggered into her, unable to hold his weight, noticeably weaker than he had been even in the short time it had taken to bring him from the alley. Max kept her arms securely around him and walked him forward so that Mole could close the car door.

Alec's head fell forward to land heavily on her shoulder. "Sorry, Maxie," he whispered, barely audible above the clicking of cameras. "Don't feel so good."

Max didn't doubt it. Pressed to him from hip to shoulder, she felt like she was standing next to a furnace. A shudder ran through him and she felt him tense, a quickly stifled groan escaping his lips. "Max," he said, pleading with her to help.

Her name, a prayer on his lips, had her in motion. She pushed him back slightly and pulled one of his arms across her shoulders. Flash bulbs exploded making spots dance in her vision.

As Max walked down the corridor created by her people on either side of her, she couldn't see for all of the lights and endless camera flashes. She could only hear the shouts, the questions, the sound of the crowd circling, closing in on them.

"_What happened to him_?"

"_Are you still planning to meet with the mayor_?"

"_How did you get out of Terminal City_?"

"_Are you two dating_?"

"_What are conditions like in Terminal City_?"

"_What would you say to the rioters_?"

"_This way, Max! Smile for the camera!_"

"_What's wrong with Alec_?"

"_Will this affect your demands from the city_?"

"_Is this a military action_?"

"_Are the transgenics planning an offensive_?"

Max froze on her slow march to the gates, torn between her instincts telling her to run and a panicked, deer-in-the-headlights reaction. There was too much noise, too many people, too much shouting and shoving. The riot was too fresh in her mind. Her mouth felt like it was full of sawdust. Her heart was pounding and she couldn't get her breath. Angry voices rang in her ears, screaming for her blood.

Those seconds when she'd gone down in the first rush of the mob were permanently etched in her mind. One of the guys with her, she didn't know which one and probably never would, had fought his way to her and pulled her up, beating back the hands clawing at her and the boots kicking at her.

"Easy, Max," Alec said, his arm around her tightening very slightly. "S'ok."

Max was close to hyperventilating and Alec straightened, drawing away from her. He put his hands on her shoulders, as much to steady himself as to talk to her.

"Slow… slow down, Max," he said and his breathless, gasping words did as much to calm her as anything else. Alec had been poisoned and he was comforting _her_. "Don't… don't freak out… on me."

Max nodded and put a concerted effort into slowing her breathing. Alec's worried, haggard face remained in front of her, reminding her exactly why she needed to calm down. He needed her right now. He'd been poisoned. He was dying and he was holding it together long enough to keep her from panicking.

"_Don't freak out on me_."

They were almost the first words he'd ever said to her. He'd changed her life the day he walked into her cell and she could feel it changing again now.

"Max, blink… or something." He took one of his hands from her shoulder and wrapped it around his abdomen.

"Yeah," she said, not liking how high her voice sounded.

"I know… you like playing… to the cameras," Alec grinned, although it was closer to a grimace, "but I was… kinda hopin'… to lay down."

Max sucked in a deep, shaky breath, held it for several seconds then let it out slowly. "Yeah, sorry."

"S'ok," he said, a hint of a smirk appearing. "Take your time."

Max frowned. "Thanks."

"I got… all day," he added. "You go ahead… and spaz… in front of the… whole world."

"I get the point," she snapped, annoyance clearing away more of the panic. When Alec raised an eyebrow, she realized that was exactly the point. He was baiting her to snap her out of it.

Mole stepped up to them and took his cigar out of his mouth. "You two gonna make out or can we get this show on the road? I wasn't built for standing outside in crappy, damp weather."

"You gonna… say something?" Alec asked her.

"To the press?"

"Not really… up to it… myself," he said. When Max nodded, Alec looked toward the other man. "Mole?"

"What?" he growled. If Max didn't know better, she'd say Mole was worried.

"Can you… I don't wanna…" Alec grimaced suddenly and began to bend forward, agony written on his face before he managed to stop himself and revert to his blank mask.

"No problem," Mole answered, although Max wasn't sure what he was talking about. He whistled loudly and motioned to several of the guys who were farthest from the gates where Logan's car had been. They immediately jogged forward and formed a wall around them. "We got it. You just stay up long enough to get through the gate."

Alec nodded his thanks. "Do us… proud, Maxie." He released her and began walking into Terminal City. The men parted around her, then closed ranks to surround Alec, screening him from the view of the cameras. After several steps, she thought she saw the men on either side of him surreptitiously take an arm to keep him upright. After that he simply disappeared into the sea of transgenics waiting for them inside the gates. It looked like the entire population had turned out to greet their return.

Fury once again bubbled up as she watched a dying man carry himself back into his prison. She could try and kid herself that it was a haven, but watching Alec ask the others to preserve his last shred of dignity as he tried to make it the remaining few feet reminded her just how grave their situation was.

Ordinaries. In that second, she hated them. She hated them all. With a few rare exceptions, ordinaries had done nothing but cause the transgenics pain. From the day they were cooked up in the lab, their lives had been pain. Trying to pry information out of Alec, the ordinaries may have killed him. The rest were standing by, watching, taking pictures, enjoying the train wreck.

She rounded on the crowd, no longer panicked by their shouting, too furious to feel anything else. The transgenics had reformed their lines, making a box around her now with the gates at her back, a sea of cameras in front of her. She raised a hand, and silence fell so abruptly she'd have thought she'd gone deaf except for the hum of the electronics and the click of cameras.

"All right," Max said loudly, her voice carrying easily in the silence, "I'm only going to say this once, so listen up." She wasn't in the mood to pussyfoot around any more and looking weak only got a person so far. Eventually people believed they could walk all over you and you would take it.

"We told you that in addition to me, Marco also survived the riot. We said he found his way back to Terminal City and was recovering from his injuries. We did not tell you how he got back here."

There was a bit of shuffling in the crowd, as if all the reporters were leaning forward in anticipation. They'd been speculating like crazy ever since the brief press release Max had sent out a few days earlier.

"The sector police took Marco into custody after the riot despite the fact that he was a _victim_ and badly injured. Instead of releasing him or allowing him medical care, they turned him over to the military. The military refused to acknowledge that he was even in their custody although we knew where he had been taken.

"Alec and two others entered the base just southeast of the city. They found Marco who was in need of immediate medical attention. In order to save him, however, one of the others was forced to stay behind. You all saw Alec in the interview right after the riot. He was healthy and uninjured. How you saw him tonight is the result of being in the military's hands for only five days. That is how the military treats one of its own soldiers. They have no conscience about killing any of us because they believe they own us body and soul.

"Even if you think we aren't human… Even if you think we're just animals…" She let her accusing eyes travel around the circle of reporters. "You wouldn't allow animals to be treated this way."

"What are you going to do?" one of the braver reporters shouted.

Max squared her shoulders. "I'm going to go back into Terminal City and hope my friend somehow makes it through the night. Tomorrow, I'm going to do what I have to do to help our people."

She didn't elaborate on the last statement. Let them stew on it for a while. Maybe it was a threat, maybe it wasn't. Alec was dying and even she didn't know exactly what she meant by it.

Max turned on her heel and headed back through the gates. The transgenics who'd been holding the reporters back closed ranks behind her and followed her through.

Max ignored the flurry of shouting and the sudden strobe light flashing of cameras. She waited for the gates to slam shut and then she broke into a run.

She had to get to Alec.

* * *

_See? Not a terrible cliffhanger today… More soon…_


	10. Chapter 10

**Loose the Hounds**

Summary: A deadly riot is the catalyst for all kinds of change in Terminal City. MA.

_This chapter is probably what y'all were expecting last chapter… So, without further ado…_

Chapter Ten

* * *

Max didn't slow until she reached the hallway to Alec's apartment. Xs and transhumans lined the walls, all grim-faced and solemn. A few were whispering, but conversation abruptly stopped when they saw her. They bowed their heads, unable to make eye contact with her as she passed, and Max realized why they were there. They were standing vigil.

Max stopped outside Alec's door where Mole was blocking her way. "Move."

"Alec locked the door."

"So?" she shot back, unnerved that Mole had used Alec's name instead of any of a dozen nicknames. It was just another sign of how grave the situation was.

"I know you weren't around back in the day," Mole grunted in annoyance, "but sometimes injured animals go off alone to die."

"Get out of my way, Mole."

"If he doesn't want to die with us watching that's his call," he warned and it sounded close to a reprimand. "For once just do what he asks."

"He's not dying," Max snapped.

"Yes, he is," Mole answered with certainty.

Max looked back down the hall to all the waiting transgenics. They'd been watching the proceedings but quickly looked down again. She could tell they agreed just by their carefully Manticore-blank faces. They must have seen something like this happen before.

"There's no chance?" she managed, barely above a whisper. "If his system can clear the drugs before they kill him…"

Mole didn't even blink. "Manticore meant for the drugs to kill him, Max."

She pursed her lips and nodded, her heart pounding so hard she knew everyone in the hall could hear it. "Then he's not dying alone. Get out of the way."

This time Mole complied. He produced a pick and had the door unlocked in only a couple of seconds. "You need anything, just say the word." Max saw several others nod.

She put a hand on the knob, took a deep breath and then opened the door. She stepped in and closed it behind her. Alec was on his knees, leaning back against the wall, just to the side of the door. He'd simply walked in and collapsed.

She heard him sigh out a shuddering breath. "Not gonna let me die in peace, are you?"

"And let you screw that up, too? I don't think so."

"Don't worry, Max. I think I'll manage it just fine with or without you."

Alec's head was bowed in defeat and Max had no clue what to do. She'd never seen him just give up like that. She accused him of it all the time, but she'd never actually seen it. Even when his head had been about to explode, he'd been chasing her right up to the deadline and then been loud and threatening, urging the doctor to move faster. When Berrisford had been pointing a gun in his face, Alec had been determined to go out on his own terms, thinking he deserved it. He'd _ordered_ the guy to shoot him.

This… this was Alec just crawling into a hole to die.

"You're getting dirt on the floor."

"Huh?"

Alec was still covered in muck from lying in the alley. "I spent hours cleaning up your mess and you're getting the place all dirty again." It had been as close to Alec as she could get during the five days he was gone. She'd obsessively cleaned the apartment from top to bottom, scouring the city to replace the things he'd broken.

Alec's head came up slightly and he looked at the floor around him with those deeply sunken eyes, although she had doubts he was actually seeing anything. "Always wanted room service," he said, his mouth turning up the tiniest bit on one side.

Max huffed out a light laugh, although she didn't feel it. "Let's get you cleaned up, ok? Honestly, the stink's kinda bothering me." And now that they were alone, away from the smells of the city, it wasn't pretty. Alec smelled like stale sweat overlaid with whatever had been in the alley.

Max leaned over him and put her hands beneath his arms to pull him off the floor. She had him halfway up when she lost her grip and he went back down hard on his knees. She expected him to fall over, but instead he wrapped his arms around her waist and held on, pressing the side of his face into her chest.

"Max, you should go," he said quietly, completely at odds with his actions. His arms tightened around her slightly. "You don't need to see this."

Max smacked him lightly, then soothed it away by lazily running her fingers through his hair. She looked down at him, but could only see the top of his head. She pushed on his shoulders and he drew back, settling his hands on her hips to steady himself as he looked up at her. His eyes were taking too long to focus and Max set a hand on the side of his face to let him know she was there with him whether he could see her or not.

"Quit looking at my boobs," she ordered.

Alec blinked in confusion and then a grin began to appear. "Sorry, Maxie. They're kinda at eye level right now."

His fingers tightened on her hips as he tried to stay upright. Max dropped her hands and once again grabbed him beneath his arms to pull him up. She kept a better grip this time, and Alec, too, put a little more effort into staying up. "Shower," she said. "Definitely. You stink."

Keep him moving, she said to herself. She had to keep him going. She couldn't just let him sit down and die.

Alec sighed. "Max, I don't think-"

"Well, I do and I'm the boss." She helped him into the bathroom and stood him in the walk-in shower. "Don't fall down," she ordered. "I'll be back in thirty seconds." There was no response and she jostled him very slightly to get his attention. "I mean it, Alec. Thirty seconds. Don't fall down."

Finally, Alec nodded and she saw his lips start to move. It only took her a second before she realized he was counting. Max released him and raced toward his room where she pulled out a clean pair of boxers and a t-shirt then ran back to the bathroom, throwing the clothes down just as Alec began to sag.

"Was that thirty?" she asked.

"Thirty two. Gonna tell the CO," he warned.

"That's me, so suck it up." She was standing in front of him, propping him up. She kept one hand pressed to his chest and knelt. She awkwardly managed to get his shoes and socks off and threw them to the floor outside the shower. She then stood and more efficiently stripped the rest of his clothes, giving Alec minimal orders which he obeyed robotically.

Max very distantly took the time to appreciate his physique. He was beautiful. But then she already knew that. She would have to keep him alive, though, if she had any plans to appreciate it at her leisure.

Max turned on the shower, then moved behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist to support him as he stood beneath the spray. She'd claimed it was the smell, but her real goal was to bring his temperature down if she could.

They were silent as she stood with him, letting the water run over them both. Max could feel the muscles in his abdomen shifting beneath her hands as he moved slightly to keep his balance. When the effort became too much for him, he braced his hands against the front wall of the shower to hold his head beneath the tepid water.

After a minute or so, she brought her hands to his hips and exerted enough pressure to let him know to turn. Alec complied, grabbing her shoulders when he began to falter. Max wrapped her arms around him, holding him to her tightly. The water ran over his neck and back, over her arms and then downward, washing away the stench of whatever horrors had been forced on him in the last few days. He rested his forehead against hers, his eyes closed, and they simply stood there, matching their breathing patterns. That he was naked and she was clothed didn't seem to bother him.

She saw him swallow heavily and his mouth quirk up on one side. "This… is so not how I imagined this happening."

"You imagined us in the shower?" she asked, for the first time since she'd stripped him a blush beginning to spread across her cheeks.

Alec grinned. "Eventually. After a lot of other imaginary fun." His grin abruptly died. His arms tightened around her. He gave a pained grunt and he clenched his eyes tightly shut. A shudder ran through his body as some pain she couldn't see overtook him. She felt all of the muscles that she was in contact with contract as he fought against it. His head dropped to her shoulder and his arms tightened to the point that she could barely breathe. It lasted several seconds, then finally he let out a hissing breath, hot against her neck, and relaxed his grip.

Max reached behind him and shut off the water. She grabbed a towel from the shelf and wrapped it around him. She side-stepped out of the shower and helped him sit on the closed toilet lid. "Just… stay there for a second," she ordered. "I'm soaked and I gotta get some dry clothes before I can help you."

"M'k," he said distractedly. She saw his lips begin to move and realized he was counting again.

"I'm gonna need a minute this time, ok?"

She saw Alec reset his count and she blurred toward the door. The hallway was still full, although most of them were sitting now, and if they wondered why she was soaking wet, no one said anything as she hurried past them into her own apartment, already stripping off her wet shirt. She grabbed the first things that came to hand and was headed back out the door just as she finished zipping a clean pair of pants. She didn't bother with shoes or socks. Alec was dying. She didn't have to worry about cold feet.

Max walked back into the bathroom to see Alec still sitting on the closed toilet, although he'd somehow managed to get his boxers on. His t-shirt was in his hands, as if he'd tried to put it on, but run out of energy.

"I coulda helped you, ya know," Max said almost accusingly.

"Gotta save some mystery for the wedding night," Alec quipped.

Max rolled her eyes and helped Alec pull the shirt down over his head. "Now you're imagining a wedding night? Didn't know you were that creative."

Alec's expression turned suddenly wolfish. "You have no idea."

"Come on, lover boy," Max said indulgently. "Let's get you somewhere more comfortable." She levered him up and pulled his arm across her shoulders before heading out of the bathroom.

"Feel like luggage," Alec muttered. "Keep haulin' me around."

Max briefly considered the sofa, which was closer, but decided against it. She headed for the bedroom, carrying most of Alec's weight by the time they got there. He fell onto the bed and allowed Max to raise his feet so that he could turn and stretch out.

Alec sighed and closed his eyes. He rested his hands on his chest. It was like she could see him shutting down again right in front of her. Faint tremors raced up and down his body and Max quickly pulled the covers up over him. She stood back and was immediately at a loss for anything else to do.

"Max," Alec said quietly.

"Yeah?"

"You really don't have to stay with me."

"Alec-"

"I can do this alone," he said with finality, and Max got the feeling he was telling himself as much as her.

"Maybe you don't have to. Maybe I don't _wanna_ leave you here alone," she answered, letting her annoyance show in her voice since his eyes were still closed. "You ever think of that?"

"You can't fix it this time." He clenched his teeth together tightly as pain shot through him again, leaving him breathless. "Just… just…"

"Just suck it up," she said harshly, then her voice softened. "I'm not leaving. I can't let you give up."

"Nothin' left… to give."

Looking at him, Max wasn't sure he was wrong. Alec was gray. His skin was waxy, drawn too tight, and he looked thinner than he had five days ago.

"How…" Max had to force the question out. "How long… do you think?"

Alec was silent and she thought maybe he was unconscious, but finally he sighed. "Not long."

"Not long like… hours? Or not long like… I shouldn't bother to find you some socks?"

"Don't need socks." She saw him wiggle his toes slightly beneath the covers. "Like to be free range."

Max just looked at him. Alec was born to be free range. They all were. The bastards just kept trying to take it away from them.

She walked around to the other side of the bed and sat down with her back against the headboard, stretching her legs out in front of her alongside Alec's arm. "What happened, Alec?" He raised an eyebrow in question. "You've been gone for five days. What happened?"

"Had a party." He smirked. "Met some real nice people."

Max frowned. "Alec, I have to meet with the mayor tomorrow. I'm guessing there will be a representative from the military there, too. I need to know what happened so I'll know whose ass to kick."

Alec groaned suddenly and turned on his side toward her. His arm wrapped around her thigh, holding on for dear life, and he buried his face against her hip. Max set one hand on his arm and the other on his back, rubbing in circles, desperate to try and console him somehow. The problem was that she just wasn't any good at it. She wasn't really the mothering type. She defended the people she loved, fought for them with everything she had, but actual, physical comfort wasn't really in her repertoire.

Finally, the pain seemed to ebb and he eased his grip, shifting back a bit, his breath coming in gasps. "They…" He coughed dryly and Max wished she'd thought to bring some water with her. "They wanted… to know our limits."

"Transgenics? They wanted to know what we can do?"

Alec nodded. "How fast, how high we can jump… tolerance to… the usual."

"It's like Manticore never left," Max said bitterly. The regular military wouldn't be able to get their hands on Manticore's records, so Alec had been poked, prodded and tested for five days so the military would know what they were up against if it came to a full scale 'cleansing' of TC. "They wanted to know what kind of weapons we are."

Alec's fingers tightened where they were still wrapped around her leg. "Yeah."

"Why the interrogation?"

"Wanted to know the layout here. Fortifications, defenses… Got mad when I said no."

Max continued to rub slow circles against his back. "Anything you wanna talk about?"

"Nope. M'good."

"I don't believe you."

"Wouldn't lie to you," he said, and she heard just the slightest bit of hurt in his voice.

Max snorted. "No, but you and shades of gray…"

"M'good with gray." He smiled, amusement replacing the hurt.

"Get some rest, Alec."

He made a derisive sound low in his throat. "Wish I could."

She remembered him having much the same reaction in the car. "What do you mean?"

"Can't sleep."

"Why not?"

Alec rubbed his cheek against her hip before settling more comfortably against her side. "Too many drugs. Don't know what they were testing for. Immunity maybe… bio-warfare… Dunno… Couldn't sleep."

"You can sleep now," Max assured him. "It will help if you rest." She kept her voice calm and soothing despite the urge to track the bastards down and rip their needle-wielding arms off.

"Should've worn off by now," he said, as if to himself. "Still can't sleep. System's messed up from the other stuff."

His words were badly slurred. Max was nearly to the point of having to translate. "Then close your eyes and quit talking. Relax until your body has a chance to clear the drugs."

"Yeah. Sure," he said, but there was no hope in his voice. And he'd never answered how long he had. He must have an idea, but he wasn't going to share. If Alec hadn't slept since he'd been caught in the cell, it was just another factor taxing his system, and transgenic or not, she didn't know if his body could hold on. Max looked down at him, pain and exhaustion leaving permanent lines around his mouth and eyes.

"Why'd you kiss me?" she whispered.

"Thought you wanted me to shut up," he murmured. She could feel his lips moving against her side through the fabric of her pants.

"Why?"

He shrugged. "Wanted to."

"Why?"

"The black eye was too sexy to resist."

"Why, Alec?" she pressed. There was no time left. If this was all she was going to have then she needed to actually hear it.

Alec sighed. "Because you're magnificent… and I thought I lost you."

Max sniffed doubtfully. "Magnificent, huh?"

"Kinda snuck up on me, too," he said, but sounded amused.

"Only you could wait 'til we're in this mess to decide you like me. You know how screwed up that is?" she accused, but tempered it by gently running her fingers through his hair, petting, soothing as pain made all of his muscles tighten and he pressed closer to her side.

"Spend twenty years… being an… emotional cripple," he panted, "and see… how fast you are… on the uptake."

"Yeah, I have no experience with that sort of thing," Max shot back, trying for a normal tone of voice despite the nearly paralyzing dread filling her.

"Agh… Max." His grip around her leg became bruising. "Please… I…" He twisted beneath the sheets, desperate to find some way away from the pain.

This time the episode did not seem to pass as quickly. Max leaned over him, making soothing nonsense sounds, whispering useless comforting words, trying not to panic at how quickly he was going downhill.

After some time, Max wasn't sure how long, Alec's grip seemed to lessen, but Max didn't think it was because the pain had passed. One look at his face told her the truth. He was simply growing too weak to hold onto her. Max grasped his arm and untangled it from around her leg. He made a pained noise, low in his throat, and immediately pulled the arm closer to his chest as if trying to physically keep himself together.

Max removed the pillow from beneath his head and set it back against the headboard, then as gently as possible raised Alec so that she could slide behind him. She pulled him up so that he was reclining with his back against her chest. His head fell back on her shoulder and she wrapped her arms around him. What little good the shower had done to bring his temperature down had passed and Alec was once again radiating furnace-like heat.

His breathing was shallower than she remembered. "Alec?" she asked. "This ok?"

He patted her knee weakly. "S'good. Not how… imagined… but s'good."

"Back to living in dreamland, huh?" she said, fighting back tears. She wasn't a crybaby, but she didn't know what else to do. She'd lost so many people she loved, some of them dying in her arms, some even at her own hand, but this… She'd never felt so _useless_.

"Was a… good dream." He let out a tiny puff of a laugh, causing more pain than the little enjoyment the light comment offered.

"Shhh… Don't talk." Max brushed the sweat-dampened hair back from his forehead.

Alec's lips twitched. "Always… tryin' to… shut… me up." His breathing was growing slower, shallower, closer to gasping. "Gonna get… your wish."

Max didn't have the heart to joke anymore. "Not like this, Alec. Never like this."

"S'ok." His hand fluttered like he wanted to pat her knee again, but didn't have the strength.

She set her hand over his heart, laying it flat. She could feel the beat, sat with him while she felt it slow as his breathing became shallower still, his breaths farther in between.

"Stay with me," Max whispered, her mouth next to his ear. "Fight for me, Alec."

She didn't know whether he heard her or not. His head was resting heavily against her shoulder. She rubbed his cheek with hers, pulling his sagging form as closely to her as she could, desperate to hold onto him, keep him with her.

Alec took a breath and she counted.

One, two…

He took another breath, shallower, his exhausted body working to draw the air in.

One, two, three…

"Stay with me, Alec. Just stay with me. I need you here."

One, two, three…

"Just hold on. Hold on. For me."

One, two, three, four…

* * *

_More soon…_


	11. Chapter 11

**Loose the Hounds**

Summary: A deadly riot is the catalyst for all kinds of change in Terminal City. MA.

_Sheesh… Y'all were warned way back at the beginning and ya still get all bent out of shape! But have no fear. We're in the home stretch now._

Chapter Eleven

* * *

Max walked out into the hall and closed the door behind her, leaning back against it out of sheer exhaustion. Everyone got to their feet at her appearance and Max saw that the corridor was even more packed than it had been before. Everyone who could manage it had come to stand vigil at Alec's deathbed. They were just waiting for her to say the word. Only Alec could manage to instill that kind of devotion in such a short time. Max knew it from experience. Alec had tried, then refused to kill her and Joshua and within minutes she'd whisked him off to a doctor to keep his head from exploding.

Joshua stepped forward. Max should have known he would come with the others to wait on news of his buddy. "Medium fella?"

"He's alive."

There were so many gasps that Max almost felt like the air had been sucked out of the hallway. She closed her eyes, feeling slightly dizzy. It had been close. So, so close. She never wanted to cut it that close again. She imagined that to her dying day she would have nightmares about Alec's labored, stalling breaths, the fear that this would be the last, that he would take a breath and his exhausted body just wouldn't bother to take another.

"What time is it?" Max asked, barely recognizing the croak as her own voice.

"13:00," Mole answered.

"Meeting with the mayor still on?"

"One hour. We already have people in place and a team ready to go with you." Mole's tone told her that he'd been afraid he was going to have to go into the room to pull her out, and was relieved that he wouldn't. Or maybe he was just relieved that Alec was alive. Alec somehow managed to get along with everybody and was Mole's built-in buffer. Alec kept everyone from killing Mole and kept Mole from killing everyone.

"Good. Just let me get cleaned up." Max looked up at Joshua. "Can you sit with him while I'm gone, big fella?"

Joshua looked liked he'd just been given a bike for Christmas. He leaned forward and gave her a big, messy, doggy kiss on her forehead. "Joshua take care of Alec."

"Thanks, big fella."

Joshua reached past her and nearly had the door open before she'd quit leaning on it. She moved out of his way and Joshua disappeared inside.

"How is he really?" Mole asked, now that Joshua was gone. Max got the feeling it was a bit like the parents not wanting to talk about the really ugly stuff in front of the kids.

"Well, he's not dead," she sighed, "so that's something at least. Hasn't woken up yet."

"He gonna?"

Leave it to Mole to ask the hard questions she was trying to ignore.

"Don't know. Depends on whether his body can repair whatever internal damage the drugs did." Any number of organs could have been damaged depending on which drugs and what Manticore had intended. "I'm gonna take the not-dead thing as a good sign."

Mole nodded and squared his shoulders, pulling a fresh cigar from a case in his pocket. "Get dressed. The team's out front."

And leave it to Mole to make her do her job when all she wanted to do was sit down and cry.

* * *

Max stopped just inside the room. Part of her security team was already on guard standing to either side of the door she'd just walked through and she knew there were two transgenics waiting in the next room where the meeting was about to take place. There were two more behind her as well who'd been her escort. As promised, the sector police had been on duty to safeguard the building and to accompany Max and her group.

Standing to either side of the door on the other end of the room were two men in black suits wearing earpieces. Stereotypical Fed security, definitely more than what the mayor warranted. Interesting.

Mole was at her side, her acting second. She'd chosen him to come with her because he was smart, a good tactician and he would scare the living crap out of whoever they were dealing with.

"You ready?" he grunted.

"Sorta. Just remember, your job is to keep me from kicking the mayor in the crotch," Max said, completely deadpan.

"Then we might have a problem."

Max looked up at him. "How's that?"

"I was gonna remind you that was your job."

Max couldn't help a nasty smile and she saw the two guys in suits tense. "Guess the mayor better watch his jewels then."

Mole barked out a harsh laugh. "That's the spirit."

Max squared her shoulders and marched across the room. The suited guy closest to the doorknob hesitated slightly as if deciding whether this was a good idea, but finally he reached over and opened the door.

As Max and Mole walked in, three men sitting on one side of a long table got to their feet. She and Mole walked to the other side of the table and stood facing them. There were two transgenics behind them standing guard, one an X-series, the other a transhuman with too much bat in his cocktail among some other freaky things. He had hearing that made the rest of them look like amateurs and was a walking sonar device.

Against the wall behind the three men they'd come to meet were two more suits. Max doubted the guys at the table knew how easy it would be to take their security out. Probably a good thing, too.

"I'm Max. This is Mole."

The three men standing on the other side of the table blinked, as if not quite sure what to say. They were openly staring at Mole who looked less than pleased by the scrutiny.

"Is there a problem?" Mole growled, and the three visibly jumped and averted their gazes. Max supposed that if you weren't expecting it, it was a bit like having your pet lizard suddenly look at you and say howdy.

The man in the middle, who was wearing a suit that had to have cost more than most people made in a year and whose hair wouldn't move in a stiff breeze, recovered first. "Thank you for agreeing to this meeting," he said smoothly. He had a good voice, a career politician's voice. Max decided he was the reason for the upscale security guards. "Especially after the… unpleasantness."

"You mean the lynch mob," Max said dryly. She turned her eyes to the man standing beside Mr. Fed. "Thank you so much, Mayor, for your hospitality. Three good men died because you didn't have the guts to let us hole up in your offices until the sector police could clear the area."

His mouth opened and closed like a landed fish. "I… You… It… wasn't possible."

"I thought we were going to try not to piss 'em off," Mole said out of the corner of his mouth, though it was clearly audible to everyone in the room.

"I just wanna know that if the crowd outside gets bigger, they're not gonna have their two security buddies back there point a gun at us and order us outside." She raised an eyebrow and gave the mayor a barely disguised snarl, images of the riot, permanently imprinted on her brain, flashing through her mind. "I'd kinda like to make sure we're all gonna get out of this meeting alive."

Mr. Fed stepped in to save his fellow politico. "Ms. Guevara…"

"My name's Max," she said, not surprised really, but still annoyed that they'd looked into her background. "Who are you?"

"Secretary Gordon." He paused as if Max was supposed to be impressed, but it took a lot more than a title to get her all tingly.

"He's the head of Homeland Security," Mole supplied.

Max sighed inwardly. Great. Mr. Fed really was a fed and a bigwig fed at that. With the insane amount of media attention, the transgenics had become a problem on a national level and the big guns had decided they wanted in on the negotiations. This particular bigwig was a personal friend of the president.

Max turned to the third person at the table. He was in dress military uniform and was practically sparkling he was wearing so many insignia. She'd guessed one of the military types would be included this time, especially after Max had so publicly declared them to be the villains yesterday.

"General Clayton," he said and, although his expression was unreadable, Max could see the hate burning in his eyes. He glanced at Mole, his eyes narrowing fractionally, then back to Max. Not a fan of the transhumans, Max could see. She was once again certain she'd made the right call to bring Mole. Just his being there told her what they were dealing with and it cemented in her mind which way they were going to have to go with this.

"Shall we sit?" Mr. Fed suggested.

The five took their seats and silence fell over the room, everyone sizing the others up. Mr. Fed was as cool as a cucumber. General Jackass still looked like he'd rather shoot them and go home. The mayor just looked nervous, out-ranked by the other two men and probably ashamed by his order to throw the transgenics to the wolves. Logan had assured her the mayor was a decent guy and she guessed he'd just panicked and made the world's crappiest call when he saw city hall was surrounded. She'd like to feel sorry for him, but she'd also like to rip his arms off and beat him with them. Nothing personal, really, but turn about was fair play.

"First things first," Max said, deciding she'd had enough of the staring game. "I want immunity for every single transgenic in Terminal City. We don't get it, then there's no point in the rest of this meeting."

The mayor sat up straighter, surprised. "I beg your pardon?"

"Exactly," Mole grunted.

"If you could explain?" Mr. Fed said coolly.

"The sector police actually want to interrogate _me_ for inciting the riot. Since all of this started, if there's even a possibility that one of us might have been involved in something, we've been blamed. Others have been caught on video stealing food or other basic necessities. Several of us have charges pending because we were caught in a situation where we would be killed if we allowed the police to take us into custody. We're not criminal by nature, but after the escape, with everyone trying to chase us down, we just haven't had any good choices left to us. I need to know that if we step outside the gates, the cops aren't going to snatch us up and throw us in jail, followed by an unfortunate accident that ends with the prisoner conveniently dead. If that's how it's gonna be, we'll make other arrangements for our future."

"We're just supposed to let criminals go?" General Clayton asked, clearly appalled. "I don't think so."

Max gave him the full weight of her glare. "I spent last night trying to keep a man alive because he was held for just five days in _your_ custody, General. He hadn't done anything more than exist and he came back to us _dying_."

"I had nothing to do with-"

Mole growled and it stopped the man dead in his tracks. "Don't bother. We've all had years to learn exactly how the military treats its _valuable_ assets."

Mr. Fed cleared his throat, drawing everyone's attention back to him. "The president is prepared to offer amnesty to the transgenics within reason. There have been several cases of attacks by less stable members of the population."

Max nodded. "We wouldn't expect you to overlook a murder. Of course, we will expect the same thing. We haven't done much about vigilantes simply because we've been outnumbered, but if necessary, we can take care of the problem ourselves." Max knew she was glossing over a whole lot, vigilante incidents and problem transgenics that had already been dealt with, but the feds didn't need to know that.

"That would make you the vigilantes," the general said, watching her, his face still carefully expressionless, as if studying her to see how she would react. It brought back sudden memories of Lydecker and she felt a chill race up her spine.

"That would make us a group of poor, abused, downtrodden kids," she replied, her voice mockingly distressed, "whose plight is being ignored by the government and the police, and who have been forced to act in self defense." She dropped the oppressed act. "We'll be sure to supply video to the media."

Max saw Secretary Gordon's lips twitch, almost like he wanted to smile. "Very well. As I said, the president understands that these are special circumstances, brought about by the country's own… shortsightedness. He understands that arrangements need to be made to bring this issue to some sort of close."

Mole snorted. "You try walking around your whole life looking like a giant iguana and see how closed you feel, pal."

Once again, Max saw Mr. Fed's lips twitch very slightly like he wanted to smile, but knew he was supposed to be in stoic-politician mode. Max had a feeling this guy was the closest thing in the room to an ally.

"I can see how that might be a problem," the man admitted.

"Any other demands?" the general asked, and Max was amazed at how a guy managed to sound so neutral and yet so insulting at the same time.

Max shifted her gaze back to him. "Are you pissed because we escaped from you people in the first place or are you pissed that we're not bowing and scraping for you to take us back now that times are tough?"

The general didn't answer flippantly, just gave her that careful, studying glance again. "I think you're dangerous," he said bluntly, "but I've seen the preliminary report. You could prove useful."

"Prelim…" Max trailed off as she realized what the general was saying. She felt the blood pounding in her ears and grasped the edge of the table in a white-knuckled grip to keep from leaping across it and killing him. "Alec," she said through clenched teeth. "Manticore destroyed all of its records. You couldn't get those, but you got the report on Alec."

"Yes," he said, apparently unaware just how close death was to making a house call. "Let's just put this all out on the table, shall we? The Joint Chiefs will authorize funds for the formation of a transgenic unit. You understand we cannot allow you to mix with the general enlisted population and many of you are too," he glanced at Mole, "visible to make any other sort of occupation possible. It would be a provisional arrangement, and whether it continues would depend on how useful the unit's talents turn out to be."

"Get out," Max said through clenched teeth.

"What?"

"Get. _Out_," she repeated.

Mole stood, bringing all of the security in the room to full attention. "You heard her, jackass," he growled. "Get out now before I forget my manners."

The general stood facing him. "You _people_ have nothing to negotiate with. You're unstable and you have no other option than military work. It's all you were made for and all you're good for."

"_Leave_."

Everyone in the room turned at the sound of Secretary Gordon's voice. He sounded very cool and calm, but there was steel in his voice. He was standing now, too, turning to face the general.

"You have no authority to-"

"I never took you to be a stupid man, Mitch."

"I beg your pardon?"

"There are four people in this room who could kill you as soon as look at you and you keep poking them with a stick." His voice lowered to a hiss. "I don't have time for politics right now. The president asked us to come here to bring some sort of resolution to this mess you people made and you are not helping so _get_ _out_."

The general stood up straight, nearly at attention, and turned on his heel, managing to make the action disdainful. He marched to the door and left, slamming it behind him.

Mr. Fed sniffed in annoyance. "I lied."

Some of Max's anger had dissipated in the face of Gordon's intervention. "What?"

"I lied," he said again. He smiled ruefully as he once again took his seat. "I've always taken Mitch for a stupid man."

"Gotta be. Man has a death wish to bring up Pretty Boy right now," Mole grumbled.

"Pretty Boy?"

"Alec," Mole answered. "Max gets a little bent outta shape when people try to kill her main squeeze."

"He's not-" Max stopped herself before she finished it. "Yeah," she said instead. "Yeah, I do."

Silence fell over the room as if everyone, or at least the transgenics, realized she had just admitted something monumental. Max rolled her shoulders to relieve some of the tension. Just thinking about Alec had her stressed. What if something happened while she was here in the meeting? What if he took a turn for the worse? Again she heard the gasping, wheezing breaths that had filled hour after hour the night before as Alec clung to life, hanging on by a thread as his overtaxed system fought to clear the drugs that were poisoning him.

Mole sat back down and elbowed her in the ribs. "You gonna give them the rest of our insane demands or what?"

Max nodded, mentally shoving all of her worries to the side. The faster she got this over with, the faster she could get back to Alec. "Mr. Mayor?"

The guy looked nervous at being addressed again. Max imagined that dealing with an invasion of government-grown supersoldiers hadn't been on his agenda when he'd run for office. "Yes?"

"According to our information, the city seized all of the property in Terminal City after the pulse."

"Yes," he answered warily. "It was deemed a public danger and was taken by the city."

"We want it."

"You what?"

"Squatting is getting old. No one else can survive there because of the biohazard problem. It's a complete craphole and nobody wants to live there anyway. We're working to clean it up, and at the moment, we're only safe when we're together. It's useless to you, worse than useless, it's a dangerous nuisance and we're willing to take it off your hands. No more worries for you and a place for us."

"I…" The mayor looked completely flummoxed. "I don't know if that's even possible."

Secretary Gordon was nodding. "You want something like the Native Americans. A… reservation."

"Something like that."

"But… I can't," the mayor stammered. "I'd have to put it before the city council. They… they might not-"

Gordon put up his hands to stop him, although he was looking at Max. "I'll see that the land is federally seized."

"You'll what?" The mayor's mouth was hanging open.

"Thank you for your time, Mayor. I believe Max and I can handle it from here."

"But you can't-"

"The door is to your left," Gordon said evenly and Max could see how this man had come to hold such a powerful job. He had that sort of personality. "It was a pleasure to meet you."

The mayor stood, half-furious and half-relieved at the reprieve. "We'll see about this," he said and bolted for the door.

Gordon waited for the door to close behind the mayor. "The land will be in federal hands as soon as it can be arranged."

"If it's all the same to you, we want it in our hands," Mole growled. "We've lived on the government's dime for longer than any of us ever wanted to."

"And we don't want anyone to be able to kick us out if the next guy in charge has a problem with the lab rats living on his land," Max added.

Gordon was silent for a moment. He sat back in his chair and laced his fingers, resting them across his stomach while he studied them. Max fought not to fidget while the politician sat and thought out the ramifications of what he was offering and what they were asking. Finally the man pursed his lips and nodded. "I will arrange for the land to be held as an irrevocable trust with a person or persons of your choice as trustee. Will that be sufficient?"

Max looked to Mole to see what he thought. Mole just looked at Mr. Fed, his expression inscrutable. Not that Mole's face was ever easy to read.

"Tax exempt," Mole finally grunted.

Once again Max saw that tiny twitch of Gordon's lips that said he was amused, but knew he shouldn't show it. "Everyone has to pay their taxes," he said. "It's the price you pay for citizenship."

"I think we've paid enough to the government to last several lifetimes," Mole replied, something in his tone that told Max it was more than a flippant statement. There was real pain there, loss, deeply-rooted. She didn't know a lot about what the transhumans had been forced to live through at Manticore, not that she knew a lot about what any of them had been forced to live through after her escape, but from Mole's voice it was more than just being forced to live in the basement.

Any amusement in Gordon's face was now gone. "Fair enough," he said solemnly. "I'll speak to the president. You will have the paperwork by the end of the week."

"You're serious?" Max asked.

"It's amazing how quickly things get done when the president himself calls to make sure you're working on it."

She had to ask, "Why are you helping us?"

Secretary Gordon sat forward again, resting his elbows on the table. "The president has been briefed on what we've been able to gather on the project at Manticore. He believes it was shameful that something like that took place using government funds and with the government's sanction during his administration."

"And?" Max prodded, wanting the real reason.

Gordon's expression turned somber. "The man who died in the riot… Your friend called him Yankee."

"What about him?"

"He guarded the president twice when there were credible threats made against him. The press was never told, but one of those threats was nearly successful. The only reason the president is still alive is because Yankee was guarding him. The president remembers your friend and was truly sorry to learn that he was one of the people who died in the riot."

"Very touching. What's the rest?" Max asked wryly.

This time, Gordon gave her a full grin. "And the president sees your potential. He's witnessed it first hand, although he didn't know what he was seeing at the time. He realizes it would be foolish not to use the resources at his disposal."

"He wants us to work for him," Mole stated. "Why am I not surprised?"

"We appreciate that you and your associates are… uniquely qualified for certain activities. Since the pulse, the intelligence business has been decidedly less high-tech."

"If you morons think we're gonna enlist…"

Mr. Fed held up a hand to stop Mole. "No. The president understands that you might be… disinclined…"

Mole snorted and shook his head. "Yeah. Just a bit."

"The arrangements will be made for you to legally remain in Terminal City, to make what you want of it. From time to time, we might come to you to assist with a problem. You will be free to choose the personnel you feel are best qualified for the mission. You, of course, know the strengths and weaknesses of your own people. You will be compensated for your work. We will treat you like… independent contractors."

"You're talking about Homeland Security?" Max asked.

"Yes. The directors of the CIA and NSA have also expressed interest. My guess is that once the military hears about it, they will come to you as well." He once again held up a hand to stop Mole's protest. "You would be independent contractors. You can accept or refuse anything we bring to you. You are free to take other jobs as well, work for businesses, for private citizens, do whatever you like. All that we ask is that you don't accept work for another government, you let us know if you are approached by another government, and you decline any work that would be against the best interests of the country."

"I'll need to talk to the others," Max said. She wasn't going to go off half-cocked about this. She and the others were definitely uniquely qualified for covert work, but she was a spokesman, not a dictator. She wouldn't make such a huge decision about their future without some serious discussion first.

"I understand," Gordon said. "Regardless of your decision, the arrangements for you to make your home legally in Terminal City will be taken care of. Your government failed you. Giving you a place to live is the least we can do, although to be honest it is less than what many would ask for. And besides," he quirked an eyebrow, that amused twist to his lips showing again, "it's a craphole. It doesn't cost us anything but what we have to pay to file the paperwork. It's a solution to make any politician happy."

He stood and held out a hand across the table. "I have a feeling we'll be meeting again," he said.

Max couldn't help a small smile from forming. She took his hand and gave it a firm shake. "You're all right, Gordon… for an ordinary."

He laughed and shifted his gaze from Max to Mole, once again holding out his hand. "You're all right," he gently scolded, "for _people_."

Mole nodded and took the man's hand, shaking it firmly. "You screw us on this and we'll hunt you down."

Gordon gave them a wry smile. "That's why we're hiring you."

Max thought she saw Mole return the wry smile, as much as Mole ever did. "Just so we're clear."

Gordon nodded and the two men dropped their hands. "I'm sure there will be more meetings to work out the details, but we'll save that for later. We'll have to choose a proper liaison, payment, etc." He nodded again, clearly satisfied with how this was going. "Now if you'll excuse me, I need to start making some calls. I'll also be holding a press conference to inform everyone of the more public details. Max. Mole. A pleasure." The secretary walked toward the door and his two secret service men followed, still blank-faced.

Max and Mole waited for the door to close behind them. "You wanna tell me what just happened?" Max said to no one in particular.

Mole threw his head back and laughed, something Max had never seen. It was a low, barking laugh, startling after the tension of the last minutes. "I think… you just gave us a future."

* * *

_In case you guys couldn't tell… Those post-series books that were supposed to give us some closure or whatever? Yeah… Hated 'em. Loathed 'em…_

_The wrap-up soon…_


	12. Chapter 12

**Loose the Hounds**

Summary: A deadly riot is the catalyst for all kinds of change in Terminal City. MA.

_And here you have it, a nice fluffy ending. Thank you for each and every review. Hope you enjoyed it._

Chapter Twelve

* * *

Max hurried down the hallway to Alec's apartment. The corridor was empty now. She imagined everyone was sitting in front of their TVs waiting for Secretary Gordon's pending press conference. Mole was already spreading the word about the offer and trying to gauge everyone's feelings on the subject. She guessed he would set up a meeting for them to come to some sort of decision.

Max knew that many of them would jump at the offer. As long as they weren't formally tied to the military and could take care of business the way they saw fit, many of them would be more than happy to put their skills to use. It was what they were good at, after all. She knew that others wanted as far away as possible from this place and anything resembling their former line of work. When it was safe, they would very quietly make their way out of Terminal City and disappear into the woodwork.

Max didn't care what everyone chose to do as long as they were free to make the choice. It was all she'd ever really been fighting for. If they wanted out, she would personally see that each and every person had money, ID and the appropriate, forged if necessary, passes to get where they wanted to go.

Max opened the door to Alec's apartment, desperate to get back to him. She'd nearly run as soon as she was back inside the gates, but forced herself to appear calm due to the news cameras tracking her every movement since she stepped out of the meeting.

She walked into the bedroom and stopped in the doorway. Alec was lying in bed, pale and still as death. She took a moment to reassure herself that he was breathing, his chest rising and falling in a slow but even rhythm. The sheets had been changed and it looked like Alec had been bathed as well. His hair was slightly damp and he was wearing a fresh t-shirt.

Joshua was sitting in a chair next to the bed with his arms loose at his sides and his head tilted back. He was fast asleep with his mouth hanging open and snoring so loudly Max was surprised Alec didn't wake up out of sheer irritation. She imagined Joshua had spent most of the night outside in the hallway with the rest, waiting for word on Alec. She was momentarily sorry that she hadn't invited him in to sit with her, but the night before she simply hadn't been willing to share Alec with anyone, not even Joshua. She'd thought she would only have one night and hadn't wanted to edit anything she needed to say because there was someone else in the room listening.

"Joshua?" He snuffled loudly, smacking his lips, and then went back to snoring. "Joshua," she said more forcefully.

Joshua jumped and nearly fell out of the chair before catching himself and looking around the room to get his bearings. His worried eyes landed on Alec first, then when he decided there was no change, swung toward her.

"Hey, big fella."

"Hey, little fella." Joshua stood, his eyes straying back to Alec as he walked toward her.

Max nodded toward the bed. "How is he?"

"Alec still asleep." He frowned. "Still hurting."

"What?"

"Alec asleep, but not peaceful."

Max hurried toward the bed and sat down beside Alec's hip, taking one of his hands in hers. He wasn't feverish anymore, at least not like he had been. He was still too pale. His long lashes stood out starkly where they rested against his lightly freckled cheeks. As she watched, she saw his face move, a tick, barely enough to notice. She wasn't sure she would have if Joshua hadn't told her.

Joshua came up beside her and set his heavy hand on her shoulder. "Give Alec time. Getting better."

Max nodded, but couldn't speak. Her throat was closed, eyes locked on that tiny give-away that Alec was in pain even in his sleep.

This was all her fault. The riot, the men who died, Alec getting caught, Alec lying here so silent, still hurting, all because she ignored him before her first meeting with the mayor. She really had needed to go to the meeting. She had no doubts about that. But she should have listened to Alec's requests for a better setup.

"Max stay with Alec?"

She let out a choked laugh, almost a sob. As if she could leave.

"Joshua need to go back to Marco."

"What?" Max tore her eyes away from Alec and had to crane her neck to look up at her too-tall friend.

"Joshua take care of Marco. Make him eat."

"How is he?" Max asked, guilt weighing even more heavily at the reminder of how she had hurt Marco as well.

"Not good," Joshua said solemnly. "Not easy to lose brother… More than brother."

"He gonna make it?"

"Told him would paint Polo for him. Marco like idea."

Max just nodded. It wasn't much, but it was a start. Hard to say if Marco would make it. If he did, only time would tell if he could learn to function on his own.

Max distantly heard the front door close behind Joshua and she did the only thing she could. She settled in to wait.

* * *

Alec swam back toward consciousness. He'd come up for air a couple of times before, but quickly decided that was a terrible idea and had fallen right back into the darkness. He was pretty sure Joshua had shown up at some point and cleaned him up for which he was grateful. That and Joshua was always easy to have around. The big guy was just sort of restful somehow, even when he was being all doggy and crazy. Maybe it was that Joshua was so genuinely _good_. Alec knew that, personally, he was too damaged to ever be that good and didn't really even understand it, but he could at least appreciate it.

Alec tried to force his eyes open. He needed to know if he was alone. The pain was getting worse the more awake he was. It wasn't the sharp, stabbing pain that he'd grown to expect. Now it was a constant, draining, bone-deep ache. If he was alone, Alec fully intended to roll over, groan, and beg, loudly, for it to stop. If he had an audience, especially if it was Max, he was going to stay right where he was, smile, and pretend he didn't want her to go away so he could be properly miserable in private.

Alec concentrated on keeping his breathing steady and even, focusing on the rise and fall of his chest. After a second, he noticed that the movement felt heavier than it should have. A moment after that he realized it wasn't his chest. There was something _on_ his chest.

"Alec?"

So… not alone. He finally managed to get his eyes open and waited patiently for the world around him to settle into recognizable shapes. He tried to raise his head, but it felt like it weighed a ton. Still, he managed well enough to see that it was Max's hand, resting over his heart, making his chest feel so heavy.

"There a reason you're in my bed?" he asked, barely recognizing his own rasping voice.

"Got cold," she said evenly. "You broke your space heater when you went nutso and I haven't been able to find a new one."

"Heater was already broken," Alec murmured.

"Uh huh," she replied skeptically.

Alec didn't bother to argue. The heater had been broken, two of the settings anyway. If the last setting had gone out after he kicked it, that wasn't his fault. It had clearly been defective to begin with. "Warm enough?" he asked instead.

"Fine. You?" Her fingers moved against his chest, five distinct sources of heat soaking through his t-shirt into his skin.

"Toasty."

The next thing he knew there was a hand behind him, raising him slightly, and a cup held to his lips. He knew he must have lost some time, but ignored that in favor of the beautiful sensation of cool water on his tongue and parched throat. After they'd shot him up for the interrogation, it was like his body had been set on fire, flames spreading from the injection site, nearly incapacitating him within minutes. Muscles aching, burning… Bones, joints, organs, skin, anywhere with nerve endings had been kindling for the fire.

Alec didn't remember a lot from his escape. They'd strapped him down to give him the drugs, but one of the guards had made the mistake of stepping too close. After that it had all been a blur of fighting, running, hiding, all through the burning, drug-induced haze, always with the certain knowledge at the back of his mind that he was a dead man. His only goal had been to somehow get back to Max before that happened. He hadn't wanted his last memory of her to be some disembodied voice over the radio. If it was all he was going to get, he wanted her in his arms. He just had to hold on long enough to find her, to get back to her.

"I'm here, Alec. I'm right here."

Alec felt a cool hand against his forehead, realized he had lost time again, realized some of his scattered thoughts must have come out of his mouth. Freaking drugs and freaking military men, lowering his defenses so he spilled his guts at all the wrong times. Max didn't need to know how desperate he'd been, how panicked he'd felt until he'd stumbled across that jerk in the alley and stolen his cell phone.

"Don't worry, Alec. I still think you're a shallow, scheming, self-centered jerk who's only out to protect his own ass."

Alec felt a smile tugging at his dry, cracked lips. "Don't you forget it."

"Go back to sleep," Max urged. "I'll be here when you wake up. Got lots to tell you."

"Hmmm?"

Alec felt the hand on his forehead curve around to settle against his cheek. "Guess this makes me the knight in shining armor," she said.

Alec fought to hold onto consciousness. "What?"

He heard her chuckle lowly. "I may have saved the kingdom while you were down for the count. Protected the dragon instead of slaying him, but same difference. And don't you dare tell Mole I said that."

Maybe Alec wasn't the only one who'd been drugged. Max wasn't making any sense.

Her fingers brushed through his bangs. "Guess that makes you Sleeping Beauty, huh?"

Alec was almost gone when he felt lips, soft and luscious, pressed against his own.

"Just make sure you wake up for me, Alec."

* * *

Max woke to the sound of Alec walking back into the bedroom. She had remained awake as long as she could, but finally the days of stress following the riot as well as Alec's very near miss had caught up with her. A look at the window told her she had slept through the night. The sun was already up, albeit hidden behind Seattle's normal cloud cover.

Alec slid back into the bed and pulled the covers up. She was facing away from him, but he smelled of toothpaste, soap and the rusty water that was all they could get in TC. He was breathing more heavily than he normally would and Max guessed it would still be several days before the relatively inconsequential task of taking a shower was anything but exhausting. He was up and moving though, moving on his own, when only a couple of days before she had been certain he would breathe his last while she was unable to do anything but stand by and watch.

The mere thought of how close she'd come to losing him had her turning over and reaching for him. He was lying on his back. Abandoning all pretense of remaining aloof, she wrapped herself around him. She hooked one leg over his, pulled herself closer with one arm across his chest. Max rested her head on his shoulder and settled herself beside him, pressed to him as closely as she could manage.

Alec remained very still, clearly surprised by this turn of events. After several seconds, she felt his arm slide more securely around her until his hand came to rest just above her hip.

"So…" He cleared his throat uncertainly. "I, uhh… guess you've given up on that whole personal space thing?"

"Pretty much," she answered. "Least until you do something else stupid and I have to kick your ass."

"That will still require being in my personal space," Alec observed dryly.

"Guess you'll just have to get used to it then."

His arm tightened around her and Alec looked down at her at the same time Max looked up. "Max, I've been in your personal space since the minute we met."

"Maybe I decided I don't mind anymore."

"Good to know."

Without warning, Alec flipped them so that Max was flat on her back and Alec was on top of her. He rested his upper body weight on his forearms so he wasn't crushing her, but Max was very aware of every single inch of his body pressed so close to hers.

Alec remained perfectly still, allowing her time to run if she wanted, or to kick his ass across the floor if she wanted. His eyes, fevered and glassy the last time she'd seen them, were now bright with a different kind of fire, brilliant green and locked with hers.

"I hear you've been busy," he said conversationally, as if she couldn't feel his heart racing, couldn't see how much effort he was putting into staying absolutely still against her.

"Heard that, did you?" she replied. Max very purposely drew her knees up on either side of his hips, cradling him.

She saw him swallow, but his voice was perfectly calm when he said, "Mole came by earlier and I saw a little of the news. You're the big hero again." He raised one eyebrow. "Not to mention you look too sexy for your own good on camera. I'm jealous."

She brought a hand up and ran her fingers down the bridge of his nose, across his cheek, before setting her palm flat against the side of his face. The last time she'd seen him on camera, he'd been wishing he could see her one last time and, in turn, she'd wished that she could touch him again. "You look pretty good in person, if you ask me."

Alec smirked. "You tell me I'm conceited when I ask things like that."

"That's because you are."

"Good thing you don't like the humble type then." For the first time she saw a trace of uncertainty in his eyes, just a hint that he wasn't quite sure she was done with Logan. Even now, with her in his arms, her body begging for his touch, and he had doubts. Max knew it was her fault, her months and months of indecision. It was no wonder he needed the reassurance. Apparently, Alec was more humble than he knew.

"Good thing," she said. "Now are you gonna kiss me or do I have to do all the work around here?"

"Are you calling me lazy?" he asked, a definite warning in his eyes that sent a shiver down her spine.

She shrugged, feigning indifference, although she knew he could see the effect he was having on her. "Well, you have been layin' around for a couple days now."

"Fine. Next time, _you_ can go on the rescue mission and get yourself caught," he said ruefully.

"That _was_ pretty careless."

"You know, you're right." He eased closer like the downward half of a push-up. "I need to be more careful," he said, his mouth brushing hers as he spoke. "Definite attention to detail." He closed the distance and kissed her slowly, thoroughly.

Max wrapped her arms around him, and the spell Alec was weaving abruptly cleared. The muscles in his arms and shoulders were beginning to shake from the strain of maintaining his place above her. Max could literally feel how determined he was not to rush her. She'd been Logan's one and only for as long as Alec had known her and he was giving her time to adjust.

Alec's lips left hers and trailed to her neck, settling over a spot where she knew he could feel her heart pounding. The breathtaking sensation almost derailed her intentions, but she forced herself to focus. He was hurting himself to give her the time to run if she wanted. She was just as determined, however, not to hurt him any more with her choices.

"Thought…" She had to clear her throat to get the words out. "Thought you wanted… to save some mystery… for the wedding night."

Alec took all of his weight back on his forearms, lifting away from her so he could see her face properly. Max felt suddenly cold at the loss of contact, but she knew he wasn't well enough for this much exertion. She'd waited this long for a man's attention. She could wait a little longer.

"What?" And this time the strain of keeping himself in check was plainly evident in his voice.

"You know… wedding night… justice of the peace, cake, guests… getting rid of the guests…"

Alec just blinked, then rested his forehead against hers. "A justice of the peace…" He closed his eyes, breathing loudly and she could see this was something new, some other kind of tension than the oh-so-delicious kind they'd been enjoying moments before. After several seconds, he raised his head and opened his eyes. His expression was carefully bland, but there was something in his eyes she couldn't quite place.

"Max," he raised one eyebrow, "on what planet do you honestly think I am _ever_ going to let you go near city hall again."

Max sighed as understanding dawned. They really hadn't had a chance to talk since the riot. She'd come back from city hall and by the time she'd been well enough to make any real conversation possible, Alec had been captured.

The problem, however, was that this wasn't really about an imaginary wedding. This was about the arguments leading up to the first meeting with the mayor. Their survival had meant she'd _needed_ to go to that meeting. She frankly admitted she'd screwed up the arrangements for that one, but if push came to shove, and she had to put herself in danger again to help the others, then that was what she would do. Whether Alec liked it or not, this was about calculated risks and doing what was necessary even if it came at a cost.

Max tilted her head to one side, studying him. "What if I think going is a good idea?"

She saw a muscle tick in his jaw. "What if I'm not so sure?"

Max set her hands on either side of his face. "Then I'll listen. If I think it's necessary, I'll go anyway, but I _will_ listen."

Alec's muscles were shaking badly now, but he remained poised over her, looking her in the eye, and refused to move to the side. "Max, all I care about is keeping you safe. That's it. I get that you needed to meet with the mayor, but you nearly died. At the risk of sounding like a very boring and preachy guy I know, next time, just… please… tell me you'll be careful."

"I will."

"Promise me," he said more forcefully.

"You think I wanna die?"

"Sometimes I'm not so sure." His eyes were snapping, angry, possessive. "You're mine to take care of since you stink at taking care of yourself. If I have to keep myself glued to you for the rest of my life I will. Do you understand that?"

"Yeah, I get it," she said huffily.

"Do. You. Understand?"

Max recognized the question for what it was. It was as close to a declaration of love as he was capable of. Suddenly the idea of her and Alec and a trip to city hall didn't seem quite as far away and ridiculous.

"Max," he said in exasperation.

She took one hand from his face and brushed her fingers through his soft, freshly shampooed hair. "I do."

His quaking muscles gave way and he sagged against her, his breath coming out in what sounded suspiciously close to a sob. He buried his face in her neck, wrapping his arms around her, hugging her closely to him. He rolled to the side, pulling her with him until it was Max who was braced on her elbows so she could look down at him.

"You know this works both ways, right?" she said sternly.

Alec laughed, though she could see the tension still hiding just beneath the surface. "Max, I do my very, very best not to let people poison me."

"You still managed to scare the crap out of me," she said. Just the thought of how close it had been made her chest ache.

He must have seen some of what she was feeling in her expression, because he gently laid his hand against her cheek, stroking it with his thumb. "Sorry, Maxie. I tried to warn them the drugs were a bad idea."

Alec said she was his to take care of, a weirdly comforting thought, but how was he supposed to do that if he was gone? "Tell me you'll stay with me."

"I will," he said, deadly serious. His voice dropped to barely above a whisper. "You asked me to fight for you, Max, so I did. It's why I'm still here."

"Promise you'll always fight for me, Alec," she ordered.

"Always," he vowed and his expression suddenly softened. "It's what you do, Max. You make us want to fight for you. You make _me_ want to fight for you."

"Yeah?" she said doubtfully.

"Yeah."

"You know what this means, right?"

"What?"

"It means you're my personal bodyguard."

A decidedly wicked gleam appeared in his eye. "I think I can handle that."

"You do, huh?"

"I do." He kissed her. It began gently, reverently, then grew into something fierce and urgent. As with the first time he had kissed her, she felt marked by his lips. She felt branded.

From the nearly astounded, yet somehow smug look on his face, he felt exactly the same way.

Max couldn't help thinking that after all of her hopes and dreams, all of the ways she'd imagined her life would turn out, and this man was the answer.

"Max," Alec asked worriedly, "you wanna tell me why you're looking at me like that?"

"Because you're magnificent… and I almost lost you."

Alec gave her a nearly arrogant smirk, although she could see the uncertainty beneath. "Magnificent, huh?"

"I know…" Max leaned in, a smile on her lips as they brushed his in a feather light caress. "Kinda snuck up on me, too."

* * *

_Been a pleasure. Thanks for reading!_


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